King of Everything
by d27h
Summary: The UPLA is an exclusive Pokémon academy that everyone wants to get into...and two lucky people get in through scholarship. At first, Ieri Vincent and Leon Darwin both think that they have the worst problems, that they fit in the least with the rich, talented people who attend the school...but soon, they find that sometimes, they don't need to conform to be at the top. OC
1. Chapter 1

**King of Everything**

_Hi! This is D27H, and I present to you a new series of fanfiction! YAY! :D Disclaimers and notices: Pokémon, obviously is not mine, so the credit is obviously not mine, and this story has OC, so don't look at the characters and go, "What?" Also, it takes place in a sort of Pokémon Black and White 2 setting, so...ya. KK, enjoy!_

* * *

**Chapter 1**

_Ieri_

Yet another sandstorm was brewing in Lentimas Town, and it looked like a big one this time. But the citizens weren't concerned; all of them were bred-and-born desert-dwellers, and a sandstorm wasn't much of a problem. Their skins were thickened to the insistent scratches of the sand, and they knew their way around the small town without even opening their eyes.

I wasn't an exception. I was helping lead my father's elderly Rapidash- Cori, her name was- when the first heavy grains of sand began pelting us.

"Ugh." I stroked Cori, knowing how nervous the mare got during sandstorms. "It's okay. We're almost there."

We trudged through the steadily increasing winds and arrived at our house, one of the smallest mud-and-brick structures with a large stable in the back, to the sound of the wind and the rustle of the sand in our ears. I led Cori into the stable and hurried back into the house.

Mother met her at the door with a cloth held over her mouth. "Oh, child, out for five minutes and dirty already." She sighed and dusted off my shirt. "Did you get the mail?"

I groaned and slapped my forehead. "Sorry." Back outside I went, but briefly, just to reach around and pull the thin stack of papers from the box that hung next to the door. The gale outside slammed the door shut, nearly catching my fingers in the hinges.

With deft hands, Mother sifted through the envelopes. I peered into the shard of glass that took the place of a mirror.

My face was indeed covered in a reddish-yellow sand, giving my already desert-shaded skin a shimmery gold tint. This made my large, rich copper eyes stand out more. Straggles of sun-bleached brown hair fell around my face, the ends curling up a little bit to meet my jawline.

Mother suddenly cried out from the main room. "Oh my goodness!"

I dashed back, preparing to have to tackle a Sandile scrabbling out from the ground, like last time. Instead, my mother was holding a luxuriously-colored red envelope with a maroon rubber stamp and gold letters spelling out the words, "Ieri Malia Vincent" on the front.

We both knew at once what it was. It was the approval letter for the Unova Pokémon League Academy.

The U.P.L.A was the most prestigious Pokémon academy in the region, the hardest to get into in the world, and the number two school on the world, right after Supernatural Exclusive in the Hoenn Region. It accepted only the best trainers-to-be, and it was pricey, too. However, every year, two full scholarships were given out to one boy and one girl who did well on what was internationally called a Mock League, or a fake tournament, in which the applicants went through a series of battles very similar to the real Pokémon League. Even if one finished with no losses, the final judgement was based on personality, Pokémon choice, and Pokémon care.

Luckily for me, I had grown up around Pokémon. My father was one of the best breeders in Unova, and he stressed the importance of ensuring the comfort and happiness of his charges.

"Oh, Ieri, come here!" Mother cried. She wrapped her arms around me and squeezed me tight. "Now you can go to a good school and not have to worry about money! I need to call your sister. When your father gets here, we must tell him the good news as well."

As if on cue, the front door slammed open and shut, and Father stomped in, grumbling about the sand in his eyes. Mother let out another cry of joy and proceeded to bombard her husband with the facts.

At first, Father's face was a little nonplussed at being assaulted the moment he got out of the storm. As he continued to listen, however, his face brightened, and at the end, he was as joyous as Mother was. He lifted me off of my feet and swung me around in a circle, just like he did when I was little.

"Now you can change the luck that our family has gotten ever since Lentimas Town was found by the outsiders!" he shouted, practically crying like my mother. Around and around I went, laughing, both at and with my parents and their joy. I could understand it.

Finally, my father let me down and scoured the letter. "Wait, but we have to send you to Virbank City...how do we get you to a major airport in time?"

Mother sighed in relief. "Oh, but it's just the Lentimas Town Airport. It's just down the road a little." I smiled a little; the pilots at the Lentimas airport knew me, and would be very pleased to hear the news. "Looks like an official is coming to pick her up."

Father's elation came rushing back. "My daughter is going to the U.P.L.A! I can't believe it! Which Pokémon are you going to take, honey? You can take any ones you want."

"Only four though," Mother pointed out. "You have to pay for each extra."

Father shrugged. This time, his flame wasn't going to be extinguished. "So I suppose we start packing today?"

My parents threw themselves into a discussion about what I should bring. Quietly, I snuck out to the stable out back, where all our Pokémon were kept.

When I opened the door, Cori whinnied anxiously. I soothed her with quiet noises and scooted around her to the back.

I quickly found the three Pokémon I used for the Mock League- an Empoleon named Cobalt, a Lucario named Breaker, and a Ninetales without a name (there had actually been four Pokémon, but the last one, a Skarmory named Tin, had died a couple of days ago). Cobalt, the largest, stood in front of his friend Tronk, a smelly but cuddly Trubbish, but relaxed when he saw it was me.

Two of the three Pokémon had long histories. Cobalt had been abandoned as a Prinplup; he was left outside our door, and we didn't know who left him there. He was a fast learner, and in no time, he became the imposing creature he was now. What made him even more valuable to me was the fact that he was one of only two north-category Pokémon I had ever seen. The Ninetales was found as a Vulpix wandering by the airport, making the saddest sounds you could imagine, most likely missing her owner. She had been here for three years now, and no one had claimed her.

Breaker, on the other hand, was my very own darling. She looked incredibly intimidating, given that she was one of the strongest and toughest Pokémon out there, but she was actually very soft-hearted and friendly. At least, until a battle; then, she would pull out all stops and fight for the top, barreling down her enemies until the very end. Breaker was a Riolu when I got her about four years ago; a trader passing through the town offered her in exchange for two nights of food and bed. My mother, being the kind woman she is, accepted, and I got the Riolu. Later, when she began to help with the construction of the houses in town, I dubbed her Breaker of Things, which shortened to Breaker.

It wasn't until the Mock League that I realized how determined she actually was to help me and be a good friend. When the man came and took me to Black City, the evaluation center for the west coast of Unova, I wasn't expecting her to fight hard and climb up to the top with Cobalt, Tin, and Ninetales, and then evolve into a formidable Lucario in the final battle against a helpless girl named Anna.

I blurted out everything to the Pokémon, and they responded with a spray of water, a gleeful howl, and a fist pump. Quickly, I checked them for any maladies that may have prevented them from going, and doled out food to the others. Then, I sat back and thought.

Who was to be my fourth Pokémon?

Maybe I didn't have to bring four? I would feel better with the three that I had, because the others were all ill, bad-tempered, too old, or too young. With a shrug, I gave the three I would take a pat on the head each and left the stable.

The wind had abated a little bit, and I could run home without fear of getting my eyes torn apart by the flying sand. My mother, my father, and my best friend, Montor, were sitting at the table.

"Ieri!" Montor stood up and crossed the room in two strides. He grabbed my hands in his. "I can't believe it! You're actually going to the U.P.L.A! I knew you would!"

I laughed. "Thanks for believing in me! I'm so happy."

"Which Pokémon are you bringing?"

"Uh... Cobalt, Ninetales, and Breaker."

"Aren't you supposed to take four?"

"Yeah, but I don't know which else to take."

Montor pursed his lips, then fumbled in his bag for something. He surprised me by pulling out a Poké ball.

"Then take my Haxorus." He pressed the ball into my hands.

"I can't do that!"

Montor raised an eyebrow. "Well. Then consider it a parting gift."

I peered down at the Poké ball. A tiny Haxorus sat in the center, glaring up at me. My eyes became wet, and I hugged Montor tight.

* * *

_Leon_

It was raining hard the day I got the acceptance letter. I was hanging around outside, unwilling as always to go home and face my mother, who, last I checked, was raging after a few too many beers. Sighing, I closed my umbrella and leaned against the doorframe of the market.

Darla was sympathetic as I explained my situation to her. "Again? Poor dear. Why don't you go to your father?"

I shook my head. "I don't want to impose...he has a hard enough economic situation as it is, and my sis is already there."

"Such a good boy." Darla handed me a little bag. "Here, some MooMoo Milk and a loaf of bread for you."

"Thanks."

I sat on one of the benches outside that was covered by the overhang of the roof. Right across from me was my house.

That's when I noticed the bright red envelope poking out from the mailbox.

Quietly, I crossed over and pulled it out, mindful not to get spotted through the window by my mother. Thank goodness my sis was finally at my father's place for good; Mom seemed to be heavy into her cups. One of her bottles was lying in two pieces on the table, and the light was knocked over, spilling light onto the polished wood floor.

I hurried back to the bench and slipped the paper inside out. My heart felt lightened when I read the letter, and even more so when I found out that I was leaving tomorrow. Until I realized that I didn't have a ride.

I couldn't ask Mom, I said to myself. Maybe Darla or that ex-Plasma lady could. She seemed nice enough.

Darla was surprised but happy to see me again so soon. "Oh, Leon!"

"Hey, do you know anyone who's going to...umm...Virbank City today? By ship, plane, something?" I mulled over the options as Darla thought. I could find a train to Nimbasa City, catch an airplane or a subway from there, or go by ship from Castelia. Or I could settle for a boat ride from the harbor right here in Driftveil.

"I think Martha is going to Virbank City this evening for her friend's daughter. She got accepted to U.P.L.A."

"Like me?"

"Oh, dear, you did?" Darla was overjoyed. She grabbed me and squeezed me to her harder than I thought a woman that petite could. "Oh, congratulations! Now you don't have to face your dreadful mother anymore," she added with a scowl. "Martha! Do you think you could do me a favor?"

Martha, the young woman who sold the delicious cupcakes and desserts in the stall across from Darla, smiled sweetly. "Of course."

As Darla explained the situation, I gave Martha a once-over. She had tanned skin, characteristic of the desert dwellers from Lentimas or Desert Resort. Her body was willowy and lean, and her eyes were a rich brown, almost like bronze or a really shiny walnut. The only problem was her hair, which she had cut so short that, if her body were taken out of the picture, she would look like a boy.

"Oh, but of course. I would love for my sister to meet the other lucky winner." Martha smiled at me. I smiled back, mostly out of politeness.

Darla patted me on the shoulder. "Okay, boy, get your stuff and get back here before seven."

I ran back to the house, but despite my excitement, I opened and closed the door softly. I didn't want my mom to come out screaming. Hurriedly, I found two duffel bags and shoved my clothes, some books, other things like my toothbrush and money, and, last of all, food, for both me and my Pokémon.

My Pokémon were waiting outside in the shed I had built them. I only had four, but they had given me so much; I had won numerous junior tournaments and gotten to the semifinals of the PWT with them. They provided me refuge from my insatiable and drunken mother.

Lindsey the Typhlosion rubbed her head against my elbow, careful not to singe me with her flames, after I told them all about my success. Tony, my Seviper, thrashed in his kennel. Darter the Mismagius flew around the building and floated above my shoulder.

The only one not celebrating was my extremely tranquil Dragonair, Dofin. He rumbled his approval and flicked his tail, but didn't move around. Dofin had some sort of medical problem that didn't allow him to evolve, but he had more than made up for it by being a great fighter, fast and with finesse, and very helpful outside of battle. He protected me from my mom when she tried to hit me, and he would light up the house with a gentle spark whenever my mother broke the lights. He was the one who helped me get enough money to support myself and my mother from tournaments.

I split the MooMoo Milk evenly between the four Pokémon and gave them each a chunk of bread, eating the rest of it myself. My mother was too hungover to make breakfast today, and there wasn't anything to scavenge from the shelves and fridge. Which reminded me. I had to let my mother know.

Before I could go to her room, though, the door to my room creaked open. My mother stood there in her nightgown, rubbing her eyes like a child.

I resembled my mother, as much as I hated to admit it. We both shared the same almost-white blonde hair and icy eyes. Both of us had high cheekbones and long fingers, and we even shared the same Pokémon interests- we preferred waterfront, aerial, and western over desert, northern, and southern. I didn't like our resemblance, though, because my mom was cruel enough to my sister and I. Why remind me that I was like her?

Mom looked down at my bags, then saw the acceptance letter. A rare smile broke over her face. "Leaving me for UPLA, huh?"

I was ready for the barrage of hits that was typical of her. "Um. Yeah."

My mom looked around the room and pointing to the picture of our family, before my dad left for the White Forest. "Take that, okay?"

I looked at her strangely and warily as I reached for the photo. "Why aren't you...?"

"Honey, I'm happy for you. I went to UPLA, too. Did you know?"

I did not. "Really?"

She sighed and sat down on my bed. "UPLA is great. You'll love it there. Maybe I'll sober up, someday, and visit you there."

Mom had never said anything like that before. "Wait, how did you get into UPLA?"

"Scholarship. Just like you." She stretched and yawned. "Well, I have a killer headache...have fun, sweetheart. Make sure to visit this old lady someday, alright?"

She left my room, giving me nothing but a strange sense of forlornness. Hurriedly, I packed the rest of my stuff into the duffel bags, trying to ignore the unwanted moistness of my eyes.

Martha was waiting for me in front of the train station. "Ready?" she asked, her eyes kind.

"Ready as ever." I fingered the special device on my hand that held my Poké balls. Dofin, Lindsey, Tony, and Darter looked up at me, expectant. I smiled down at them.

Martha put a hand on my shoulder. "Then off we go."


	2. Chapter 2

**King of Everything**

_Well, it's off to a decent start...Well, enjoy, and remember, I would appreciate constructive criticism! THANK YOU FOR READING! _

* * *

**Chapter 2**

_Ieri_

Virbank City was much larger than I imagined. In fact, it was more of what I thought Castelia City or Nimbasa City would be like, and now I wonder how large those two cities are. Or maybe the map in our Poké Center was just really outdated. I don't know.

Most likely the latter, because the map showed far fewer buildings than there actually were. In the map, there was no airport, yet I was in one now. I could also see a few tall buildings in the distance, once again disproving the map.

And, most importantly, the map didn't show the Pokémon Academy.

It stood much further down, probably down in the Virbank Complex, and with the sun bearing down behind it, it looked like it was dusted gold and glittery. A pale orange, fading into pink, then pale purple, then blue sky enhanced the industrial beauty of the town.

Suddenly, I longed for the tininess of Lentimas.

The official who escorted me, Amelia, was very friendly. She talked and smiled a lot and answered all my questions and more with detailed, sometimes verbose, answers. Amelia was also very pretty, with well-maintained brown hair drawn back into a tall ponytail and proud facial features.

"...so the meals are served based on that day's activities. Better listen to the announcements, or else you'll end up like poor me when I was there, in my first year." Amelia finally finished her litany on the food schedule and the cafeteria with a huge breath. She fell in step with me as we strode towards the exit.

All I did was nod and keep my eyes on the horizon.

A white-haired girl in purple and blue clothes came dashing out from a warehouse as we passed by. "You jerk!" she screamed. "Get back he-" She stopped when she saw me and Amelia. "Oh, hello!" she said, suddenly pleasant. "Are you one of the new students at UPLA?"

I opened my mouth as if to speak, but Amelia beat me to it, as expected. "Why, hello, Roxie, haven't seen you in a while. Yes, this is Ieri," (she said my name EE-ree, not ee-eh-ree, like it was supposed to) "and she is indeed one of the scholarship winners."

Roxie gave my hand a hand pump that was surprisingly firm for a girl so slender. "Congrats! Make sure to stop by the gym sometime for a friendly battle okay?"

The gym? I peered over her to see the warehouse she ran out of. Yes, there was a sign that read "VIRBANK CITY GYM" in bold, purple letters. So Roxie must be a gym leader, like the ones I heard about?

Amelia put her hand on my shoulder. "We'd love to stay around, but I have to get this girl to the school as soon as I can. I'm already a bit behind schedule."

Roxie put her hands up. "Gotcha. I need to beat the sense out of a moron anyways." She turned around, glaring at a boy standing stock-still in front of a house. "Hey, YOU! COME OVER HERE!"

Amelia hustled me away before anything happened.

The UPLA looked more and more intimidating the closer we got, with its factory-like structure and many windows. But, on the bright side, it fit in well in the Complex, with its many steel buildings and pipes.

Amelia stopped me before we walked into the tall grass. "Remember," she instructed. "the tall grass has Pokémon, so be careful if one jumps out at you. And if a trainer asks you to battle, finish it as fast as you can."

I nodded. Just outside of Lentimas Town was a cave that I went into a lot to train, and in front of it, there were also tall grass and battle-hungry trainers. I was prepared.

At least, I thought I was, before a strange magnet-like Pokémon I had never seen before levitated up in front of my face.

Being the person I was, I didn't scream, but I tried to swat at it before I remembered that I had Pokémon with me. Quickly, I fumbled with one of the Poké balls, not sure of which one I had picked, and released the Pokémon inside.

Montor's Haxorus reared up in front of me. Without me even saying anything, it snapped at the Pokémon, chasing it away. The Haxorus turned towards me with a smug expression.

Amelia clapped. "That was impressive. The Pokémon, by the way, was a Magnemite. Very pesky, those things."

I ran a hand down Haxorus` back. He was friendly with me, because Montor was always challenging me with him. I never won, and I had always envied Montor's ability to guide his Pokémon. Now, I wondered if it was just because the Haxorus was psychic.

"Good boy," I said as I got him back into the Poké ball. Amelia looked around and shrugged.

"Let's just go as fast as we can," she said to me. I nodded and followed her through the rest of the Complex.

The inside of the academy was nothing like the outside. It was brightly lit, with polished wooden floors and comfy-looking couches by a fireplace. The fireplace wasn't lit, since it was early autumn, but some people my age- students, I guessed- were crowded around it anyways. A large staircase in the back led up and down, and a sign next to it read, "UP: Dorms and classrooms. DOWN: Training centers." The smell of chlorine was present, indicating a pool, something that I had only seen once in my life.

A man wearing the colors of the school, red and gold, came up to me. "You must be Ieri!" he said with a smile. (I was impressed, because he actually got my name right.)

We shook hands. "Nice to meet you, sir."

"Well, let's get you situated in your dorm before the tour of the school and town." He handed me a little red bag. "Inside, there is your key, the food pass, and some other things you might want, like an updated map of Unova and the Virbank Area." The man pointed at the stairs. "You are on the fourth floor, room 431."

I thanked him and hurried up the stairs, looking at the signs on the walls for guidance. One, two, three. Fourth floor.

It was like a hotel. There was plush carpeting beneath my feet, and the doors were all wooden, with eyeholes and shiny doorknobs. Lights ran down the hallway, placed about ten feet apart from each other, making it as bright as day.

Room 431 was about halfway down the hall, to my left. It was a big room, with a bed pushed against one wall, the bathroom on the other end, a kitchenette, a table with two chairs, a closet by the door, a large desk in the middle of the wall across from me, and even a Pokémon feeder. As I pondered how I would fit Haxorus and Cobalt into the same room, somebody knocked on my door.

It turned out to be a good-looking boy with silvery hair.

"Hey, is this room 433?" he asked, a little surprised by my appearance.

"Umm...this is 431. 433 should be there." I pointed to my right.

He glanced over. "Oh. Oops. Sorry. Ugh, I'm so tired from the ship."

I nodded, sympathetic. "Yeah, I might suffer from a little jetlag. I took a plane from my town to here, and it's, like, midnight back there."

"Man, that sucks."

"Yeah."

"You from Himalau City? You look pretty tan."

"No, Lentimas."

"Cool."

We stood there awkwardly before he cleared his throat. "Anyways, thanks. See you around."

"`kay."

I closed the door after he walked away. Breaker and Ninetales, the only two Pokémon I had let out (for fear that the other two would be too big), were looking at me strangely.

"What?" I asked.

Breaker huffed.

* * *

_Leon_

Well, that was embarrassing.

I had been too tired to actually look at the numbers on the doors, and somehow, I ended up at the room of a pretty girl from Lentimas. Behind her were two Pokémon, a Lucario and a Ninetales. They looked tough.

When I got to my room, the first thing I did was collapse onto the bed, my hand over my face. It was a nice room, and I would've loved to look around, but I was exhausted. Who knew I would get seasick so badly?

After we got off, Martha told me to go ahead to the school. She was going to buy food and a gift for her sister, apparently. I wondered who her sister was.

Then, it hit me. The girl next door _was_ Martha's sister. They shared a resemblance that I hadn't noticed before; the tanned skin, the large copper eyes, the lean body structure. The more I thought, the more like Martha the girl was.

As I deliberated, I released Lindsey, Tony (who immediately started slithering around the room for exercise), Darter (who chased after Tony), and Dofin (who was asleep). Lindsey seemed to least comfortable; she kept fidgeting next to me on the bed, probably because it was so much softer than what she was used to. I stroked her back gently and felt her relax under my fingertips.

Might as well check out what was in the bag the guy gave me. I tipped it over and let the contents spill out.

There were two maps, one of the Unova region and another of Virbank City and the surrounding towns. A red plastic card labelled FOOD CARD- VIRBANK hung from a black cord. I clipped the key onto the cord, next to the food card.

Finally, there was a little book with coupons and passes. Apparently, the students at UPLA got discounts on everything, from food to PWT tickets, which pleased me; I didn't have enough money as it was.

Tony poked his head up onto the bed and snatched the Virbank City map. He slithered away with it into the kitchen area. I sighed and rubbed my forehead. _Not today_, I thought. I loved Tony, as he was a dependent Pokémon in battle, but he was such a bother outside of the battlefield.

Dofin woke up as Tony brushed past him. His eyes were dazed and spacey, probably like mine; neither of us fared too well on the ship. Dofin made a rumbling noise from deep inside of him and tucked his head back under his tail.

* * *

The Pokémon training centers downstairs were impressive. There were four battlefields, a pool, a Poké center, a basic fitness center, a terrain simulator, and even a shop with treats. The terrain simulator caught and held my attention; it was basically a battlefield that could be changed from one type of terrain to the other, like water to meadow to rocky ground. A boy with a Flygon was fighting against a girl with a Tyranitar on a desert-sand setting.

Looks like the girl was winning.

The man who was leading me around the campus, Philip, cheered for the two boys on battelfield 1. It was a heated battle, literally; the boy on the far end had a Magmortar while the one closer to us had a Charizard. The two were sending flames everywhere. Thank goodness there was protection for the people, because otherwise, they would've been fried.

"What do you think?" Philip asked me. "Do you want to try a battle with someone?"

I shrugged. "I guess."

Philip pulled out a walkie-talkie. "Hey, can someone send Ieri down here? She might want to meet the other scholarship winner."

"Ieri? That's a weird name."

"I think it's nice. Difference is good." Philip tucked the walkie-talkie into his pocket. "While we wait for her, do you want to warm up with me?"

"Sure."

Battlefield 3 was the only one open. Philip let out a Luxray. I chose Darter.

"I must warn you, I'm not very good at battling." Philip called out apologetically. To the Luxray, he said, "Hyper Beam".

His apology for being not very good at battling was misplaced, because he was really quite a tactician. The Luxray used tricky moves, most of which didn't give me much time to dodge or defend. Luckily, Darter was one of the best dodgers that I knew of, and he managed to avoid most of it. In the end, Darter won with a Psychic that was unusually strong, even for him. Philip applauded me.

"Bravo. I can see how you got the scholarship." he said, grinning.

The door to the battlefield slid open, and the Lentimas girl from earlier came in, looking around. Philip waved at her.

"Ieri! Glad you could make it."

"Not much to do, anyways."

"True, true. But we're going to take you around town tomorrow, so tomorrow should be better. Okay, so, Leon, this is Ieri."

Ieri nodded in my direction. "I'm battling you?"

I shrugged.

She took her place on the other side of the field and released the Ninetales from earlier. It stretched and yawned, looking bored. Ieri smiled at it.

"I'll go first?" I asked.

"Whatever you want."

Darter hurtled towards the Ninetales, about to use Power Gem, when the Ninetales sent a powerful Energy Ball- a strange move for a fire type- at Darter. The poor Mismagius didn't have enough time to dodge and got hit squarely. He dropped a couple of feet and tried again, but the stones flying through the air were destroyed by another Energy Ball.

It went on like that for a little while; Darter would try his best to send a good attack, and the Ninetales would counter it with no effort. It finally ended when the Ninetales used Psyshock and sent Darter's final attempt at a Power Gem back at him.

"Wow, there were a lot of moves that I didn't expect out of a fire type," I told her.

Ieri ducked her head. "Well, my father has a lot of TMs, so I just experimented with them and found some interesting combinations."

"Cool. You want to keep battling?"

"How about we use our best?"

Best? The Ninetales wasn't her best? Now I was worried, but I agreed anyways. Out came Dofin.

Ieri sent out the Lucario I had seen earlier. It pulled one arm behind its head, the way a human would before playing a sport.

"Ready?"

Dofin made the first move. He called down a lightning bolt, but the Lucario used Extremespeed, darted from here to there faster than my eye could follow. It reappeared next to Dofin, and, with its speed, looked almost as if it ran right through him.

Dofin used Surf, swamping the field. The Lucario sprung up above the torrent of water but got swept up when it landed back in. I pumped my fist.

Too soon. The Lucario lunged at Dofin, a purple sphere appearing in a pulled-back hand. It smashed into Dofin and engulfed the battlefield in the purple light. Ieri and I looked away.

When the light cleared, Dofin and the Lucario were back in their original spots, but definitely wanting to go at it more. Both Pokémon reared their heads for Dragon Pulse. I knew that the power released would be too much for humans to handle if they both used the move, and I shouted, "Stop!"

Dofin and the Lucario stopped and looked at me, confused. Ieri was pale; looks like she knew what would've happened, too.

"Okay, good Breaker, that's enough." She returned the Lucario- Breaker?- back into its ball and turned to me. "Oh, gosh, thanks."

"Yeah, if I didn't do anything..." I left it at that.

Philip was standing outside, open-mouthed, with a couple other students, including the two fire-users from earlier.

"That," he managed. "was intense."


	3. Chapter 3

**King of Everything**

_Nothing to really say this time, but if anyone can give me name suggestions I would appreciate it...it could be ethereal or just pain weird, as long as it's not super common, I'm good. Thanks!_

* * *

**Chapter 3**

_Ieri_

I woke up to the sound of rain tapping at the windows.

It was only a light drizzle, but the unfamiliar sound was enough to rouse me from my sleep. Rubbing my eyes, I glared out at the city, wishing that it was a sunny day like yesterday. That would've been nice, although I would've had the glare to deal with.

My Pokémon were sleeping soundly as I padded by them to the bathroom. Haxorus and Cobalt were still in the awkward positions that they had gone into in order to fit in the room without destroying anything, but they seemed okay. Ninetales opened one eye and purred when I stopped to stroke one of her tails.

I was a walking disaster when I looked into the mirror. My hair was in the same messed-up ponytail I had put it in the night before, my eyes were glazed over with sleep, and my nose felt stuffy. With a sigh, I brushed my teeth and splashed water on my face, wishing I had thought of bringing more towels. I would have to buy some supplies soon.

Amelia showed up at my door at around eight. "Hello, Ieri!" she said cheerily. "I'm going to take you down to the cafeteria and then get you to the tour around town. You ready?"

I mustered my best fake smile and nodded. "Let me just get my stuff."

Breaker, Ninetales, Haxorus, and Cobalt went back into their Poké balls. I put them, along with money, gum, and water, into a small bag. Amelia watched all this with a strange interest, admiring how well my Pokémon obeyed me before launching into yet another one of her stories. Although I knew it was rude, I ignored her and occasionally said "Oh my" or "Yeah" when it felt right.

The cafeteria was actually in the level below the training center. It was as out-of-context as something could get in a building that resembled a resort; concrete floor, simple tables with folding chairs, and beige walls that were undecorated aside from the bulletin board with upcoming and important events.

There was a large buffet at the far end of the room. Tantalizing scents embraced me, and just looking at the food, freshly made and steaming under the bright lights, made me salivate. Even my Pokémon in their balls began to squirm, anticipating a feast.

What surprised me the most, however, was that there were so few people. There were only three full tables and ten or so people scattered about in a room made to fit hundreds.

Amelia seemed to read my mind, because she sighed and rubbed her forehead. "I can see that most of the kids are still going out to town and wasting money."

"What do you mean?"

"You're allowed to go out to Virbank City and get food there, and yes, there are discounts, but it's free here. It's smarter to just stay here, because it's not like you can get much money out of battling when you're in school."

While she continued on with her loquacious speech, I spotted the other scholarship winner, Leon, sitting alone at a small table near the buffet line. He picked at his breakfast and was pushing his Typhlosion away from his food every few seconds. The Typhlosion huffed and put its head down next to Leon's tray, a stunning contrast of red and gold fur to his silvery hair and blue eyes.

"Sorry," I said, interrupting Amelia mid-sentence. "but I'm really hungry..."

"Oh, that's fine," she replied, genuinely unbothered. "Of course. Be in the lobby at nine, and someone's gonna take you on a tour of Virbank." She waved at me as she headed back up the stairs.

Carefully, I let out Breaker and Ninetales, knowing that they were the best-behaved and easiest to fit in the cafeteria. I told them to stay by one of the wall-hugging tables before I got breakfast.

There were a lot of different foods from all over the world. I recognized the raisin-and-rawst-berry oatmeal that was common in the Sinnoh Region (their climate suited the growing of oran, rawst, and kelpsy berries), the rolled dough with chives, and even flatbread and curry from my hometown. I helped myself to a little bit of everything I recognized and headed towards Leon's table.

To my surprise, Ninetales was rubbing her head on Leon's elbow. He was laughing and scratching under her chin. My Ninetales was a very aloof creature, and to see this sudden bond was unnerving.

"Hey," I called out. Leon looked up at me and gave me a half-smile. While he was distracted, his Typhlosion grabbed a piece of meat off of his fork and darted under the next table.

"Ugh! Lindsey!" he shouted. Lindsey growled happily and swallowed the meat in one go. I laughed and set my food down across from him. Ninetales trotted over to me, followed closely by Breaker. I distributed the oatmeal evenly between the two and poured more for Haxorus and Cobalt while letting them out as well, making sure that the ceiling was high enough above.

"Wow, your Pokémon are well-behaved," Leon stated through a mouthful of bread. He shot a withering glare at Lindsey, then looked back at my four, who were eating quietly and contentedly.

"My dad's a breeder." I said simply.

"Cool."

We ate in silence for a few minutes, until Lindsey the Typhlosion came over to me to beg for food.

"NO!" Leon snapped at her. I chuckled and blew on her nose gently. Lindsey cringed and wiggled away.

Leon looked at me in awe. "What did you do?"

I told him how a lot of Pokémon didn't like it when one blew on their noses and that it worked best on fire-types. Leon was impressed.

"I'm going to have to do that every second." He raised an eyebrow at Lindsey. "You hear that?" Leon turned back to me. "Believe it or not, she's the polite one. Okay, maybe not, but..."

I shrugged. "I'm guessing that your Dragonair is the calm one?"

"How did you know?"

"Dragon types are generally pretty docile."

Haxorus snorted loudly, then began hacking, probably because of a berry that he didn't see in his food. I sighed. "Or not."

Leon laughed.

* * *

We finished breakfast at eight forty and trudged up the staircase. It was a steep climb from the cafeteria to the training center to the lobby, and Leon joked that it was for students to burn the calories they had just eaten. I found it pretty funny, but I truly agreed.

The only person in the lobby was a tall boy with black-blue hair and a navy jacket, staring down at a watch on his wrist and tapping his foot quickly, the staccato beat echoing in the unusually empty lobby. He looked up when he heard my and Leon's footsteps.

"Hey, did you see Will, by any chance?" he asked.

Leon shook his head. "Sorry, man. Don't know who he is."

The boy grumbled. "I'm going to town for the tour, and I can't find my friend anywhere."

"We're going too." I said. "We've still got time. Your friend might show up later."

He nodded and stuck out his hand. "I'm Jason, by the way."

Both Leon and I shook his hand and introduced ourselves. When he pulled back, he looked over at the staircase and yelped. "Oh geez!"

Leon and I both turned quickly, expecting a dangerous Pokémon to come barging down the steps. The only thing- person, actually- was a stunning blonde girl with pale brown eyes.

"Oh, Jason!" she squealed, dashing down the last couple of steps. "My sweetheart!" The girl flung herself at Jason, prompting a cry from the boy and a disgusted _ugh_ from me and Leon. She nuzzled against him before turning her eyes towards us. "Who...are they?"

Jason tore himself away from the girl and scurried behind me and Leon. The whole scene would have been funny had the girl not started to advance on me like a Mightyena after prey, eyes gleaming angrily.

"Umm...h-hi," I stammered. The girl had her face uncomfortably close to mine, and the look in her eyes was most certainly not of companionship. More like envy, actually.

"You would be?" she asked in a voice dripping with poison.

"Ieri Vincent."

She pulled back. "I'm Amber O'Maille, from Nimbasa City. I won four of the Unova Pageants and one international pageant. Do you recognize me?"

_This girl_, I thought darkly to myself. _Is not someone I want to know._

Leon saved me. "I don't recognize you, but the name sounds familiar."

Amber suddenly became peppy and flirty again. "It's because I'm Elesa's niece and the daughter of Alan O'Maille, famous architect. You know, Elesa from the Nimbasa City Gym and the guy who designed the gyms."

Leon smiled. "Nice."

Amber cooed and turned back to Jason, who had crept out from behind us and tiptoed towards the door. "Oh, Jason, darling, where are you going?"

"Go away," he growled. Amber scoffed.

"Fine." she pouted. With a professional flip of her hair, she turned on her heel and stalked away, but not before turning to me. "And Eileen, or whatever your name is, don't get in my way of being at the top of UPLA. Not like you could, because you're a _scholarship_ student." She spit out that last word like it carried a dirty meaning.

My rage found its way out. "Well. At least I got in because of my skill and not my daddy's money."

Her next words chilled me. "At least I _have _money."

She stormed her way up the stairs.

* * *

_Leon_

"Is she always that intense?" I asked Jason as we walked down the streets of Virbank. He snorted and shoved his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah. It's, like, her mission to get every guy to fall for her and for every girl to die or quit." He kicked a crumpled soda can on the ground. "I'm so scared of her, because she goes after me more."

"Why?" Jason was a pretty good-looking guy, with a tough-looking face and chiseled shoulders, but I didn't think I was bad-looking myself, and Amber had paid much more attention to him than to me.

"You know Grimsley Taylor of the Pokémon League?" he asked.

I nodded. Then, I realized what he was implying, and my jaw dropped. "No way. Grimsley Taylor. You're his-" I finally realized what had been bugging me since I saw him; he looked uncannily like Grimsley with the icy blue eyes and blue-black hair.

"Son. Right." Jason finished my thought and stared down at the ground. "It's not cool, being his son."

I was about to ask why, but William- Jason's friend- and two girls, one who looked like Will's sister, popped up.

"Yo, man, you Jason's new bud?" Will looped his arm around our shoulders and grinned widely.

"Maybe. I'm Leon." I held my hand out for a shake, but Will bumped it instead and glanced behind him at Ieri.

"That your girlfriend?" he said with a smirk on his face.

"What?! No!"

The man leading us around town stopped us in front of a gateway. "So, this is the Pokéstar Studios. We won't be going in today, but soon, we're taking a trip to here. Let's head to the market next to get supplies, but please, be a little quieter." With this last word, he glared at me and Will. Will put his hands up in defeat.

The market was slightly reminiscent of the Driftveil City Market, with its numerous scents and stalls of food and Pokémon running around, free. However, this market was enclosed and much bigger with hallways of stores and stalls branching off from a central atrium. It even contained mini-stores that I supposed were like the Major Stalls back at home.

Our guide set us loose into the building. Ieri immediately disappeared into the toiletries mini-store.

I scanned the faces of the people in the market. "I thought all the first years would be here."

One of the girls answered me. "The first years go on different days. Like, it's required, but unless you're on scholarship, then you can choose when to go within the first two weeks, before class starts. This is day one of the tours."

"I see."

The girl and Will's sister vanished into a crowd of people in front of a pastry stand. Will went off to a stationary mini-store and left me and Jason behind.

"So," he said, prolonging the word. "Where do you wanna go?"

I shrugged. "I need stuff for my Pokémon. Didn't take enough food and all that."

Jason punched his fist into his palm. "Alright, let's do this thing!"

Shopping with Jason was very convenient, because he fussed over the prices and haggled with the vendors so much that, when the coupons were added in as well, the price was down by at least sixty percent. And yet, he would still complain that it was too expensive.

"That's funny, coming from the son of one of the richest guys in Unova," I said with a laugh. Jason shook his bag of Pokémon food and grinned.

"Doesn't hurt to be money-conscious," he said, his voice trailing off as he spotted something off to his right. My eyes followed.

Two people were having a street battle in the small battlefield at the center of the atrium. One had a Meganium and the other had a Dusclops. It was a truly stunning battle; the Meganium and the Dusclops were even in terms of power, and their moves were pulled off flawlessly. From what I knew, however, the Dusclops would be having an advantage, with its impressive defense. Jason _ooh_ed and dragged me to the gathering crowd by the wrist. I complained, saying that we had more supplies to get, but he ignored me completely.

"That's cool," Jason mused after the Meganium sent a powerful Solarbeam at the poor ghost-type. I nodded in agreement.

"Who are they?" someone suddenly asked from my shoulder. Jason and I both yelped and jumped away from each other. Ieri was there, clutching a large paper bag and looking confused.

Jason put a hand on his chest and let his breath out in a big _whoosh_. "Geez, don't sneak up on us like that, Ieri!"

"I'm sorry," she said, wide copper eyes blinking. "But who's battling?"

As if on cue, an announcer's voice boomed over the loudspeakers. "And Lilly Morgan wins with her Meganium!" The people around us applauded loudly, whistling and howling. I craned my neck to see the fighters.

A boy about my age was on his knees, tending to his defeated Dusclops. The girl, Lilly, handed him a Max Revive with a kind smile. She reminded me a little bit of my sister, with her ruby-red hair and compassion. Unlike my sis, though, she had (I don't even know why I noticed these things, so don't judge me) a full chest, coy freckles, elegantly long legs, and the audacity to wear a rather short, red skirt under an open jean jacket. I felt the slightest of blushes creep across my face, and I looked at Jason, who seemed to be thinking the same things as I was.

"Lilly is a five-time winner now! Anyone think they can beat her?" the announcer said.

I felt Ieri shift behind me and I turned to see her slipping easily through the crowd.

"Hey!" I shouted, following her much more awkwardly. Jason pushed past people behind me.

When I finally reached the front, Ieri was already on the field, clutching a Poké ball. Her name was read by the announcer. I could barely make out strains of what the two girls were saying.

"...best on best..."

"...too hard for..."

"...perhaps, but I would like to try..."

Finally, they stepped into their respective positions. The word START reverberated through the speakers, and they began. Lilly sent out a frightful-looking Garchomp while Ieri released her Lucario, Breaker. The two intimidating Pokémon stared each other down.

"Surf, Garchomp," Lilly said languidly.

Jason turned to me and mouthed the word _surf_? I shrugged and continued to watch the fight.

The standing places of the trainers rose as the Garchomp's wave roared across the field. Breaker leaped up and grabbed hold of the edge of Ieri's trainer spot, waiting for the water to disappear down before letting go. However, those extra couple of seconds cost her the time needed to recuperate before the Garchomp's next attack.

"Earthquake."

The ground shook, and this time, Breaker had no chance. She simply jumped whenever cracks appeared at her feet and took the damage she got with grace. When the rumbling stopped, Ieri shouted "Dragon Pulse!"

A purple orb appeared at Breaker's throat, and the Garchomp was completely overwhelmed when the move met the Pokémon. Amazingly, it was still standing after the dust cleared, with only a third of its HP gone.

"Dragon Claw."

The Garchomp lunged at Breaker, who put her arms up in front of her as a feeble defense. At the last moment, Ieri cried "Aura Sphere!"

Breaker had just enough time to form a decent-sized ball in her hands before pounding it square into Garchomp. This time, the Pokémon was down for good. The audience was silent for a moment before erupting into cheers and screams. I join them, hoping that my voice doesn't get hoarse too quickly.

"Wow! A win in record time!" somebody next to me says.

Ieri is flushed and happy, murmuring praise to Breaker. Lilly, quite obviously a good sport, gives Ieri a hug and hands over reward money with a genuine smile. Ieri thanks her, returns Breaker to her Poké ball, and rushes off of the field, back to me.

* * *

"So you're the scholarship winner from last year?" Jason asked incredulously, oblivious to the vanilla ice cream trickling down his wrist. Lilly nodded and handed him a napkin.

She had found the three of us in front of an ice cream stand and treated us to the flavors that we wanted. Then, she introduced herself fully; Lilly Morgan, second-year at UPLA, number three of the school's Battle Board, and female scholarship winner from the previous year. "I didn't really deserve the scholarship," she confessed, nibbling on her cone. "I was paired up with really weak trainers during the Mock Trial."

"But you had to face the strongest during the finals," Ieri pointed out.

Lilly tilted her head. "Hm. Touché. But I bet you really fought for your scholarship, right?"

Ieri shrugged. "It was okay."

Lilly looked at me. "And you?"

"It was pretty easy for me."

Jason seemed to be nonplussed about not getting her attention, so he began asking a lot of questions. "What other Pokémon do you have?"

"Well, I started with a Gabite that evolved, Petunia the Meganium, Roserade, and a Leafeon, but during the first-year midterm and final challenges I caught a lot of Pokémon. I use Tropius and Gigalith the most out of those."

"You like grass-types, huh."

"Yeah, I'm from Icirrus City, so I didn't see many fire types or grass types. I like grass better, they're easier to control."

"I'll say," I agreed with a scoff, thinking of Lindsey.

Jason continued. "Are you wearing the school uniform?"

"Yup." She pulled aside her jean jacket to reveal a white short-sleeved blouse with the UPLA seal printed on the shirt pocket. "First years get leniency. Starting form year two, as soon as you get here, you're given the uniform and expected to wear it."

"Which Pokémon is your favorite?"

"Please don't tell me you have a favorite, it's unfair to the rest of your Pokémon." Lilly said this with a touch of sadness, and I found myself wondering if she had ever had known someone who showed cruelty towards herself and Pokémon.

Jason cringed, even though Lilly hadn't said anything sharp. "S-sorry."

"What do you have to apologize for?" She smiled.

Jason laughed nervously.

At that moment, Will showed up. He opened his mouth to say something, probably a greeting, when he spotted Lilly. His mouth closed, teeth making a loud click audible even over the noise of the market.

"H-hey, who are y-you?" he stammered, running a hand over his hair and slicking it down.

Lilly cast a sidelong glance at Ieri. "Please don't ever date any of these guys, m'kay?"

Ieri's face reddened. "What do you mean?"

Will and Jason exchanged nervous glances, which gave me an uneasy feeling inside.

The two other girls from our group ran towards us, panting and upset. "Guys! We've been looking for you for, like, an hour!" Will's sister whined. The other girl launched into a tirade about how our lateness and them having to look for us ruined her hair.

"Sorry." I cut her off in the middle of her sentence. "Let's go, then. Bye, Lilly."

Ieri leapt up and went ahead to the entrance. Jason seemed reluctant to go, and I had to smack the back of Will's head to get him to move.

We all left Lilly sitting alone on her bench, in the middle of a sea of people.


	4. Chapter 4

**King of Everything**

_Just the usual thing: Pokémon is not mine (oh, how I wish it was). Well, I wouldn't expect anyone to mistaken Pokémon as mine, but it's a copyright thing, I guess. Thank you to those who are reading! :)_

* * *

**Chapter 4**

_Ieri_

It was just after classes began that I discovered how cruel and heartless some of the richer students were.

As expected, Amber had a mob of followers and grunts who acted like her and obeyed her every wish. They joined her in harassing me during class, in the halls, and during free time in the evenings and on the weekends. Amber and her circle made sure that my financial situation was very clear to the rest of the school by giggling about how I counted my money before every transaction and how the biggest splurges I had made so far were of Pokémon supplies. It seemed like all of the girls in the school feared her and consequently avoided me.

Thankfully, I found friends in Leon, Will, Jason, and another boy that Amber was constantly flirting with, Hector. We had met outside the library (which was hidden surprisingly well on the usually-empty twelfth floor, next to a small school supplies store and a sitting area overlooking the city). I was walking out of the library doors, reading from a book suggested by one of the professors, when Hector ran head-on into me. He apologized quickly, then dashed behind one of the couches and crouched down. Amber poked her head up from the staircase, spotted me, smirked, and ran back down. Hector looked up and sighed in relief.

"She's a beast," he stated as he helped to pick up the stuff that I had dropped. "A scary, flirtatious beast."

I agreed wholeheartedly.

Surprisingly enough, Amber didn't humiliate Leon or Lilly, even though they were scholarship students as well. In fact, she seemed to hunt Leon down even more so than Hector, Jason, and Will combined, and whenever I was around Leon, she was particularly nasty. I theorized that she wanted to prevent the tainting of Leon from being around a poor person like me.

It wasn't as if I was a bad student, though. So far, in two weeks, there had been two exams on History and Strategy and three demonstrations in battle, with both trainer platforms and on real terrain, and I had aced them all. And yet, Amber always managed to sneak in some sort of hurtful comment, like the one during the first flat terrain demonstration.

Our professor, Steven (he insisted that we call him by his first name) had asked for a show of hands for anyone who had participated in outdoors or flat terrain combat. Only those who didn't come from money raised their hands, like me, Leon, Will, and his sister. Amber whispered, in a voice just loud enough to be heard from my side of the room, "Of course _she_ has experience in flat terrain. It's all she ever had, besides her stupid desert Pokémon." Her group tittered and shot glances over at me. I stared hard at the glass wall separating the terrain stimulator from the rest of the training center.

I had worked much harder than most people to receive the scholarship to this school. What about that made me easier to look down upon?

* * *

"Dang. This is a nice place." Leon put his hands on the window and looked outside. He hadn't been up on the twelfth floor before, and I had to get another book for a class, so I took him up with me. From the moment we stepped foot on the floor to half an hour later, after I came out from the library, he had been entranced by the view from the window. It _was_ amazing, admittedly, especially at sunset; the falling sun cast a red glow over the clouds and the water surrounding Virbank City, dyeing the surface of the bay a blood-like scarlet. The airport stood proudly in one of the far corners of the city, and the sign of the Pokéstar Studios flashed neon. A lonely Wingull, probably late in its migration, drifted by a couple hundred feet ahead. Even the Pokémon's blue-tipped wings were painted orange by the sun.

"Come on, Leon, time to go," I admonished, gently tugging on his arm. "It's almost time for dinner."

"Oh, just, just let me stay here for a little while longer." He pulled his nose away from the cold glass and looked at me. His chilling eyes bore into mine, sapphires blending into a background of ice and pale sunlight. My cheeks heated up from the proximity of our faces, and I found myself looking away. He did too, turning his gaze back out the window. The palest imaginable roses bloomed on his skin.

"I'll go down, then." I turned to the stairs. Leon finally peeled himself away when I'm halfway down the stairs. He quickly matched strides with me, and it disturbed me to realize how much I enjoy the feel of his arm against mine.

* * *

_Leon_

I always find myself in the worst situations, don't I. Even Ieri, the seemingly indifferent and fearless Ieri, had been embarrassed by something I had done...not that I knew what I had did.

All thirteen or so levels down to the cafeteria, we didn't talk. Ieri seemed to be retreated into herself, which she did often. All too soon, the ravishing smells and concrete structure of the cafeteria embraces us, and we separated to tend to our Pokémon and get food.

As soon as I let out my Pokémon, I knew it was a mistake. Darter and Tony started growling at each other and running around the room while Lindsey created little embers in her fur, warming herself up and loosening her muscles after a long stay in the ball. Dofin and I seemed to sigh at the same time. I sent him an imploring look, and he rounded the others back up. There was a brief struggle, especially with Darter, but Dofin, ever the dependable friend, got them under control. Relieved, I went to get all of us food. For some reason, Tony refused to eat what I brought, so I went back to get something that a Seviper would definitely eat.

Halfway across the room, however, I stumbled into something. With a yelp, I fell on my backside.

"Oh my gosh, sorry!" someone- a girl, by the sound- said. I felt something push my left side, strain for a couple of seconds, and give up with a groan. "Can you get up by yourself?"

"Yeah." I pushed myself to my elbows and looked around for the speaker. It was indeed a girl, and a short one, too; if I were standing, she would probably only be just under my shoulder (and unfortunately for me, I wasn't exactly the tallest guy around). Her features didn't help to ameliorate the doll effect; she had long, platinum-blonde hair that fell in waves down her shoulders, big blue eyes, and skin as clear as Amber's. A lavender ribbon was tied around her wrist, matching her pastel-purple ruffled dress.

"I'm really sorry, people usually don't see me until it's too late," she said with a small smile. "It's a side effect of being so small, I guess."

"It's alright. I didn't hurt you, did I?" I asked, giving her a quick up-and-down. The girl seemed fine, no bruises or scuffs that I could see.

"Oh, no, I'm quite alright. Everyone asks that when they trip over me." She sighed sadly, and I found myself pitying her.

"Sorry. So...are you a student at the school?" I tried to change the subject, as I could sense that the girl didn't like talking about her height.

"Yes. A first-year."

This tiny girl was a first-year? Like me? "Wow. Um. Really?"

She laughed, a pleasant bell-like sound. "Yes, really. Everyone gets surprised when I say that. I'm Amanda Green, by the way. Pleasure to meet you."

I took her small hand in mine and gave it a gentle pump. Amanda's grip was surprisingly strong for a girl with so small a stature.

Ieri passed us with a tray of food. "Hey, Leon."

Amanda squinted up at me. "You're Leon Darwin?"

I don't know who was more surprised, me or Ieri. "You know Leon?" she said, incredulous.

"Oh, yes, he's the male scholarship student for this year, isn't he? And you must be Ieri Vincent. Nice to meet you. I'm Amanda Green." Amanda smiled kindly, and Ieri looked up at me with surprise.

"Excuse me for asking, but how do you know us?" I said.

Amanda folded her hands elegantly over her stomach. "I don't mean to promote myself, but I'm known as a Genius in UPLA. I happen to know all the happenings, and I take great pains to keep my Pokémon in top condition. I hope to be a doctor, so I study a lot every day."

Ieri nodded approvingly. "So you must be good at battling and Pokémon analysis?"

"If I do say so myself, yes." Amanda glanced over her shoulder. "I'm sorry. My Pokémon are hungry. It was very nice meeting you two, though. Good luck!" With that, she hurried away to a table where a Delcatty, a Chandelure, a Pikachu, and a Swanna were waiting.

"Amanda Green..." Ieri muttered as we walked to her table. "That name sounds familiar."

"Why would it?" I asked her as I forced Tony's head down into a bowl of Poison-type specialized kibble.

"She wanted to be a doctor...hmm." She thought as she ate quietly alongside her Pokémon. I shot a withering glare at Tony and Darter as I noticed how calm Ieri's Pokémon were. Darter just did a backflip and stole some of Tony's kibble.

"I got it!" Ieri suddenly shouted, startling us all. Tony swallowed the piece of kibble in his mouth and choked. I patted his neck.

Ieri stood up and looked over at Amanda, who was stroking her Pikachu's head as she read from a thick tome, most likely a textbook from a class. She seemed about to cross the cafeteria, but I grabbed her arm. "What is it? Just tell me first, won't you?"

"A couple years back, the group my dad worked for hosted a competition for young people who were interesting in Pokémon health and medicine. The winner was a girl named Amanda Green from a really rich family in Opelucid City. I think that's her."

I glanced over at the girl in question. "Huh. That's quite amazing."

"I know! She was my hero for quite some time." Ieri sat back down and resumed eating.

Amber strutted by and stopped by our table. She put one flawless hand down on the table and leaned back, all the while keeping her eyes on Amanda. "You know," she said with a smirk. "I always thought she wasn't as bad as you." Amber glared down at Ieri. "But now I know she's just a nerd. Like all the rest of you."

Ieri stared back up at Amber. "Shouldn't you be at some classy restaurant in Virbank with your friends?"

"Oh, I was, but I forgot something in my room. So I came back and decided to see how bad the menu was." Amber curled her lip. "It's not too bad, but it's definitely not the quality I was hoping for. At least it's safe. It would be such a pity if the nerds of the school got sick, wouldn't it?"

I scooted my chair back. Never before had I thought that girls were capable of making the air thick with tension. But I had proof before my eyes now.

Ieri stood up, pushing her own chair back a good four feet. "What is it that you have against me?"

Amber stood up straight. "Oh, nothing, it's just that the only reason you're here is because you feel bad."

Ieri opened her mouth to speak, but Amanda appeared behind me just as her first nasty words came out. "How about settling this with a one-round Pokémon battle. It's quick, and I'm sure both of you are great fighters."

I knew immediately that she was a pacifist, capable of soothing pretty much anyone. However, these two girls were not just anyone.

Ieri and Amber didn't relax but they backed away from each other. "Fine," Amber spat. "How about after you finish eating? I can wipe the floor with you."

"Try me," Ieri hissed back at her.

I tilted my head back, scared of what was to come.

* * *

Amber's group heard of the situation right after Amber posted it on some kind of social messaging site, and they hurried back to the school. They had been waiting for Amber for a long time, and I expected them to be mad about having their dinner postponed, but instead, they had banners that read "GO AMBER!" scrawled on them in sparkly pink. They cheered and whooped, and the guys started stomping their feet.

Ieri's few supporters- me, Will, Jason, Hector, and now Amanda- were huddled together in one of the few open spaces. Will and Jason were arguing about the outcome (Jason was in favor of Ieri, while Will was saying something about how Amber was better looking) and Hector, who I didn't know very well, was animatedly discussing the differences between caring for a Fighting-type and a Normal-type Pokémon with Amanda. I just stared through the clear wall at Ieri.

The two girls began almost at once. Amber let out a Breloom while Ieri let out her Empoleon. _Shoot, _I thought._ She's at a disadvantage_.

Apparently, Amber saw this opportunity too, because she began a rally of Seed Bombs and Solar Beams. Ieri's Cobalt didn't do anything, which worried me.

Its HP bar began to drop on the big screen.

Finally, the bar was in the red zone, and Amber stood there, a smug look on her face. She raised her hand to signal to her Breloom, but before she could do anything, Cobalt let out a huge Ice Beam, by far the largest I have ever seen. It hit the Breloom full on, nearly knocking it out totally.

Ieri stood there, stoic. "Have you ever heard," she shouted across the battlefield. "of saving up power instead of throwing it around? It makes everything so much more powerful."

The Breloom staggered, and the triumph on Amber's face turned into shock. Ieri shouted out for a Waterfall, and a gigantic wave crashed over the disoriented Breloom. Its HP bar disappeared.

In only a couple of minutes and two moves, Ieri had won.

Amber was frozen, both in awe and anger. When she regained her senses, she stomped her feet. "Rematch!"

Ieri used a Max Potion on Cobalt. "Heal your Pokémon, and you can choose another one. But only one more. I'm tired."

Amber threw out a Rampardos, and Ieri let her Lucario Breaker out. I sucked in a breath. Ieri clearly wanted to end this, and fast.

Amber once again yelled out moves, barely letting Breaker and Ieri make moves, but this time, it took just one powerful Aura Sphere to win. Ieri turned and walked out of the field as Amber fell to her knees, silent.

Will, Jason, Hector, Amanda, and I rushed over to her, pushing past Amber's supporters and random students who had come to watch. "Dude, that was awesome!" Hector said excitedly. "I never saw anything like that before! Your Pokémon must have a lot of endurance to put up with all those beatings before making a move."

Will and Jason agreed whole-heartedly, and Amanda hugged Ieri. "It _was_ very entertaining," Ieri stated with a big smile.

Amber walked by, all saccharine and honey-like again, followed by a couple of girls. "I'm going to eat," she said with a little wave. "But don't follow me."

Ieri followed her march up the stairs and turned to me. "When am I ever going to see the last of her?"

I shrugged. "Never."

Amanda grinned. "But you're the winner today."


	5. Chapter 5

**King of Everything**

_I'm not going to say much this time, besides the fact that I really am starting to need some names...but that aside, enjoy! _

* * *

**_Chapter 5_**

_Ieri_

Leon rubbed his forehead as he read through his notes. "Oh, goodness, how am I going to memorize all this?"

Our first expedition was coming up, and according to Lilly, the qualifying test for the first expedition was the hardest, because we really needed to prove that we knew our stuff and that the students that would be brought along were worth something. Unfortunately, the test had two parts, and one of them was a written exam with enough material to scare even Amanda.

And poor Leon was on the verge of a breakdown.

"_IERI!_" he roared, startling me. "_WHO WAS THE FIRST PERSON TO SPLICE THE DNA OF POKÉMON?!_" He had practically thrown himself across the table, and his glass of MooMoo Milk threatened to topple off of the tabletop and onto the cafeteria floor.

"I don't think we need to know that."

Leon shoved the study guide at me, and what do you know? At the very bottom of the last page, there was a section on Pokémon genetics.

"Why do we even need to know this stuff for an expedition to catch Pokémon?" I took the packet and read the section over.

Leon slumped facedown onto the table and clasped his hands over the back of his head. "I'm going to fail this test..." he moaned pitifully.

"It seems to me that written tests aren't exactly your forte," Jason stated with mock pompousness. Will and Hector snickered, and Lilly rolled her eyes.

"When I said that the first tests were hard," Lilly said slowly. "I didn't mean for you to panic. Just read over your notes. Most of it's common sense anyways."

Leon ignored her and pored over his textbook again. "Where are we going for us to need to have to know about Pokémon genetics?"

Lilly shrugged. "I don't know where you're going. You'll have to find out, won't you?"

Each year, there were four major, week-long expeditions, one for each season and different for each grade. Locations rotated every three years, so that none of the students would repeat the same trip. The students never knew where they were going each time until two days before the actual journey, so they had to study and prepare intensely. Based on the information on the written tests, the students could make guesses as to where they were headed.

"There's just so much information on this test." Hector sighed, taking a bite out of his raisin bagel and adjusting his glasses. "We can't determine anything. Although the genetics might be indicating Black City or Nuvema Town."

"You mean the labs?" Amanda asked brightly, looking up from her notes. I smiled. If the labs were our destination, then Amanda would be overjoyed.

Loud laughter came from a table across the cafeteria. I peered over out of the corner of my eye; as expected, it was Amber and her posse. She was clinging to the arm of a handsome guy and giggling- loudly- at something he said. I strained to hear them, and apparently, so was Leon.

"...study on a Sunday! It's the only time that they can actually get out and do something with their lives!" the guy shouted. I tensed and bit ferociously into my piece of bread.

"And it's only eight in the morning, too," Amber purred, just loud enough to be heard in the din of the cafeteria on a Sunday morning. "Poor things. At least they have a chance on going on an _expedition _then."

By now, the others were listening too, and most were as pissed off as I was. Amber seemed to notice our eyes on her, and she leaned back, away from the boy. With a flutter of her eyelashes, she continued her 'wonderful' and 'intriguing' story. "Daddy takes me somewhere cool like Sinnoh or Johto every time I go home, and he lets me catch as many Pokémon and get whatever I want. We have a summer home in Majolica City, and it's so big. It's right up near the lake, and I can fish or explore every day." Amber flicked her hair with her hand. "Maybe it's even bigger than the house of some people." Her massive group, spanning five tables, burst out laughing.

I ground my teeth so hard it was a wonder that they didn't shatter.

Will stood up. "I'm getting food." he said curtly. Instead of heading to the food line, however, he strode over to the table of the loud students. He slammed his hand down on the plastic tabletop so hard that we could hear the plates jumping from here. The whole cafeteria quieted significantly.

"You know, just because we want to do well on the first expedition test doesn't mean that we have no life," he spat at Amber. "And so what if Ieri and Leon aren't as dependent on their mommies and daddies as you are? The fact that they arrived here on scholarship means that they worked hard. Far harder than you lot did, I daresay."

Suddenly, the boy next to Amber stood up. He towered over Will, was probably taller than even Jason, the tallest in our group, and had arms that rippled with lean muscle. "You best keep your mouth shut," he rumbled. "if you want to keep it."

To his credit, Will didn't back down. He stared right back up at the boy. "Well," he said. "if you want my face so much, then come get it. I dare you!"

Murmurs spread through the room. I felt the trouble brewing and stood up, pushing my chair back slowly. Lilly rose with me.

The boy growled something at Will and made a fist with his left hand. I feared that I wouldn't get there in time to do anything, but apparently, Lilly was way ahead of me.

She opened up a Poké ball and before I could comprehend what was happening, the Pokémon inside, a lean Beedrill, was upon the boy. He yelped and swatted at the giant bug Pokémon; the Beedrill stabbed its giant needle-claw into the ground as a sort of warning and returned to Lilly. She stood there, defiant.

"I would appreciate it if you all didn't interrupt the studying of my friends," she declared. "Also, I don't like how you talk about scholarship students. I myself am one of them, and I will have you know that I am a three-time winner of the Unova pageant as well, _Amber O'Maille_. So your stereotype, or whatever it may be, goes out the window."

Amber's mouth- and everyone's mouth, for that matter- was wide open as Lilly sat down and flipped to a tabbed page in the textbook.

"So," she said, taking a bite out of her omelette. "where were we?"

* * *

_Leon_

"That Lilly..." Amanda breathed.

We were sitting next to each other besides the outdoor testing room for the expedition. For the past few minutes, we had been sitting there on the floor in silence, going over our notes in our heads. Ieri, Hector, and Will were quizzing each other on the material, and Jason was nervously fondling the Grimsley-symbol amulet he always wore around his neck (that, funnily enough, I had just noticed that morning. He told me, with a laugh, that he had had it on since his seventh birthday).

"What about Lilly?" I asked distractedly, not really expecting an answer.

"She's so...shameless."

I looked quizzically at Amanda. "What do you mean?"

"The way she talks is very confident, how she easily let out a Pokémon in the middle of the cafeteria, how she dresses..." Amanda's voice trailed off. She played with the ends of her own outfit, an elegant, pink, robe-like thing with a translucent pearl-colored veil hanging from her shoulders. "I wish I was like her."

"Really? Why?"

"I don't know." She put her head back against the wall. "Maybe it's because it's just so...different from what my mother requires."

"Who is your mom?"

"Caitlin Sussen-Green from the Elite Four."

My eyes shot open. "_Caitlin_ is your mother?"

"Yes. And she is strict. She requires me to wear dresses and to act like a lady. She makes sure that I have the best education and that I do the best in schools and battles. She encourages my wanting to be a doctor." Amanda closed her eyes and sighed. "And she hates Grimsley, for some reason. Mother would be extremely alarmed to know that I socialize with his son. But Jason is nice," she added quickly, as if afraid of an objection.

I looked carefully at Amanda, and suddenly saw the resemblance. Caitlin and Amanda shared the same eyes, clear complexion, blonde hair, and overall doll-like look. In her pink dress and shoulder veil, Amanda looked even more like her mother, since it was the outfit that Caitlin wore during public events. In other words, it stood for her, just like how Grimsley was represented by his scarf and claw marks in a circle.

Amazing how I never saw it before.

"Wow," I said. "I mean...wow. I didn't even know that Caitlin had a daughter."

Amanda smiled, almost sadly. "Well, she's sitting next to you right now. I have a little brother and an older sister too, actually. But she's already married."

I was flabbergasted.

A young woman stuck her head out of the testing room. "William Manchester, Leon Darwin, Amanda Green, Hector Barone, Jason Taylor, Ieri Malia Vincent, Terrance Chester, Dominica Flynn, Abigail Ruth Voss, and Melanie Voss, please come in for testing."

Everyone who had their name called stood up reluctantly and shuffled towards the room. The boy who had been harassing Will earlier- I guess he was Terrance- gave us a scowl before turning to the other girls, Melanie, Dominica, and Abigail. I caught Will scowling back and clenching his fists at his sides.

The room was spacious and sunny, with five large windows running down the mauve far wall. Diaphanous white curtains did nothing to stop the sunlight that poured in and dappled the reddish-brown floor. A long plastic table, out-of-place in this peaceful haven of a room, was pushed up against the wall on the far right. A bearded man with salt-and-pepper hair sat back against the table.

Miss Young, the lady who had called us in, separated us into two groups of five. She sent my group, consisting of me, Ieri, Hector, Abigail, and Dominica, to the open space on the left. The other five sat down at the table and were instructed to wait for the other man's instructions. Miss Young waited for everything to settle before turning to us.

"Welcome to the qualifying test for the first expedition," she said. "You will be tested on your battling skills, Pokémon capturing skills, general knowledge, and healing skills. That group over there," She pointed at the other group with her pen. "is taking the written assessment for general knowledge first. Meanwhile, you all are going to take the field skills test first. Follow me."

She led us out the door of the testing room and into Virbank Complex. The others must have been surprised, because I could hear them muttering about something. I simply concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other.

For my entire life, I had never dealt well with pressure. Like, the first time I ever competed in a tournament, I had thrown up in the bathroom simply because I was so nervous. My body would take it further than the normal butterflies in the stomach and adrenaline, with vomiting, inability to walk properly, and incoherent speech. Just like if I was drunk. So one could imagine what I was feeling for this test, probably one of the most important in my life.

When we finally reached our destination (which was on top of a building in the complex), I leaned against the wall, closed my eyes, and took deep breaths. I thought about Lindsey when she was a Cyndaquil and how she was always running into walls, about Darter and his funny Mismagius ways, and other things to take my mind off of the sourness rising in my throat.

When I opened my eyes again, I noticed that Ieri was doing the same. Her breaths seemed to be even shakier than mine, and Hector had his hand on her shoulder.

"What- what's with her?" I asked him quietly. Hector pointed down at the ground far below us and made a swirling motion next to his temple. I thought, then asked again. "Heights?"

He nodded, and Ieri looked at me, eyes wide and face pale. I bit my lip, knowing that I couldn't help.

Miss Young had apparently noticed as well, because she came over and whispered-asked if Ieri needed some water. Ieri shook her head violently and gulped.

With a disappointed expression, Miss Young backed away to talk to all of us. "So, here we are. Your goal is to defeat three Pokémon all together in the Virbank City area within the next hour and a half. There will be a signal on your Xtransceiver. Just stay within the city."

I felt the other four peoples` surprise. "You mean...anywhere inside Virbank? Like, fishing and the Abandoned House?" Dominica asked incredulously.

The Abandoned House was an infamous, old, abandoned house that was set near the water. Supposedly, the house was constantly being flooded during storms, making it undesirable for living. However, Pokémon sought refuge in the house, in the tall grass around it, and the water near it, because boats tended not to go there and it was separated from the rest of the tall grass. Rumor had it that the Pokémon there were at much higher levels than the others because of the isolation.

Miss Young's eyebrows knitted. "Yes, it's allowed, but..."

Abigail interrupted. "But do we get more points for higher-leveled Pokémon?"

"Y-yes. Your Pokédex records all defeats and catches and there's an app that calculates the points... seriously, children, I can't stop you, but I can't help you, either, if anything happens." Miss Young was practically pleading now.

Abigail and Dominca ignored her. They ran off, winding their way along the metal walkways and bickering about what Pokémon would be in the Abandoned House.

Ieri seemed better. She was steady on her feet and not as pale. Before I could even ask her if she wanted to go to the Abandoned House, she grinned. "What are we waiting for?" she said. Just before Ieri, Hector, and I could leave, however, Miss Young stepped in front of us.

"The rumors aren't wrong when they say that the Pokémon there are stronger," she warned. "and they aren't just stronger by one or two levels. It's significant; ten levels or more."

I wasn't too worried, but Hector was. "Then why are we allowed there?"

Miss Young closed her eyes. "It's a lesson to you, I believe, to make you all understand that you are responsible for what happens when you make a decision like this." Her tone was gentle but cold. "And I can't help you if something happens, because it's not likely that anyone will later on in life."

The three of us were silent, unsure of what to say. Miss Young sighed and waved her hand. "But all you're doing is burning daylight. You only have an hour and a half."

We clambered across the walkways, slightly confused.

* * *

The Abandoned House really lived up to its name.

I could tell that the house used to be magnificent. It was large, with decorated shutters and a once-blue color. Now, though, a lot of the paint was stripped off or chipped, the lower level had broken glass and hanging shutters, and the upper level had curtains drawn creepily over the windows from the inside. The front door was totally gone, as if a wave had ripped it off. Even the water that was a mere couple of feet from the entrance was dead-looking; though crystal-clear, jagged rocks that poked up a little bit farther out and ominous fins cutting through the water killed all courage and optimism.

"I don't want to go in there," Hector stated loudly as we stood before the haunted-looking structure.

Ieri raised an eyebrow at him. "This is nothing. I lived in Lentimas and I went to the Strange House once a week."

"Ugh. I don't want to go in _there_ either." He sniffed and pulled out two Poké balls. "But I guess we have to."

I had actually never seen any of Hector's Pokémon, and when he let the two out, I had to say that I was impressed. The Rhyperior and Tauros that pawed at the ground and sniffed the air before me were definitely well-trained, seeing as to the infamous tempers of the two and how they barely moved without Hector's word. Tauros especially scared me; it was well-muscled, and its eyes looked as though they could stare down anything. The only thing that stopped me from running away screaming from the pair was the fact that they were the Pokémon of my friend.

Ieri's Lucario, Ninetales, and Empoleon were out. They stretched leisurely. The Ninetales bared its teeth at the water, flames hissing from the cracks between its fangs.

My own Pokémon looked pathetic next to the five.

I released all four, and immediately, Tony and Darter started chasing each other around. Tony's long, serpentine body left tracks in the sand by the water that spiraled and swung in accordance with Darter's flips and turns.

"You really need to learn how to control those two," Ieri said with a laugh as Lindsey joined the fray. Hector wasn't amused; he was still contemplating the house before us.

"Okay, here's what I'm going to do," he said finally, stretching each word like it was a rubber band. With a speed that contrasted his speech, he took off and polished his glasses on his sleeve, then hung them from the chest pocket of his shirt. He peered back up at the building, eyes slightly squinted. "Now I don't have to see the creepiness..."

"W-what are you d-d-doing?" Ieri stammered. I glanced over at her, surprised by her stuttering, and was even more surprised to see that her face, already tanned, was now a deep red that could mean one of two things; she was either embarrassed to the extreme, or in _loooooooove_...

I snickered. "Oh, what's this?"

Ieri glared at me and shook her head quickly. "L-let's just go inside."

* * *

_Ieri_

What? Was it my fault that Hector was good-looking without his glasses?

It was kind of hard to notice anything specific about his eyes behind his thick lenses, but with them off, I could easily see how bright they were, and how clear they were, and how much they looked like Leon's, icy-blue and beautiful, like a-

Wait. What?

What did I just think about Leon?

Something nudged my hand. It was my Lucario. As if Breaker knew what we had been sent out here to do, she nodded at the Abandoned House and made to go in.

Hector sighed one last time, prompting yet another involuntary blush from me, and following Breaker up the creaky wooden steps leading up to the front balcony. Leon passed me with a cocky smirk on his face. I hissed under my breath.

The interior of the house was surprisingly different from the Strange House back at home. It was grander and there was more light coming in through the windows. No pieces of furniture flew about our heads and no vases rattled in the corners. No Litwicks jumped out from holes in the staircases.

Still, I kept my eyes on the boards as I trailed Hector and Leon up to the second floor.

A quiet howling noise echoed, coming from one of the long hallways that stretched for what seemed like forever to my left. Leon leaned backwards towards me.

"Probably the other girls." he whispered. His mouth moved to say more, but suddenly, someone- definitely Dominica or Abigail- screamed. The sound reverberated, sounding like there was a chorus of screams, not just one person.

Hector glanced fearfully over at me and Leon. Leon nodded, and we dashed off down the hall.

We skidded to a stop in front of a massive room. A smashed chandelier sat in the middle of the room, with glass sprays everywhere. The structure didn't block our view of Dominica and Abigail, though.

There was a bit of blood trickling from Abigail's forehead. Both girls were pressed into a corner of the room, right next to a window and the still body of a Mightyena. A Weezing floated a couple of feet away from them, seemingly oblivious to the three of us standing there. Dominica's eyes darted between us and the poison-type in front of her.

Before I even figured out what to do, Leon's Mismagius was upon the wild Pokémon, catching it off-guard with a Psychic. The Weezing dropped to the floor, growled up at its attacker, and flew through a hole in the floor down to the first level.

Dominica ran towards us while Abigail crouched down next to the Mightyena, stroking its fur and crooning quietly. "Oh gosh oh gosh oh gosh," Dominica was gasping. She looked at me squarely in the eyes. "There's more, I'm telling you, we got attacked by more."

"Where?" Hector asked, his fear gone.

Abigail heard us, and pointed at the hole. "It leads into the basement. We were trying to get through when the Weezing came out of nowhere." She looked back at her Pokémon. "My little girl was so brave."

Leon walked carefully over to the hole and looked down. "I don't see-"

A roar resounded, and an Arcanine, by far the biggest I had ever seen, leaped out, right over Leon's head. It landed with a crack in front of me, and as much as I hated to admit it, I was scared of a Pokémon for the first time in my life.

Leon turned around, astounded. "Ieri!" Hector motioned his hand to let one of his Pokémon attack, but there was no need; my Empoleon had already released a Waterfall. A powerful river of water surged at the Arcanine, which jumped but got taken down by a separated segment of the same stream. It didn't faint after the first hit, but it didn't seem to be in any shape to fight immediately, so I let Cobalt use another Waterfall. This time, the Arcanine stumbled and fell, and my Pokédex dinged, along with those of everyone else's.

"That was probably the fastest defeat I have ever seen," Abigail said from the other side of the room. Her voice was shaky. "You mean- you're the girl scholarship winner, right?"

I nodded.

"Wow, that's...you really deserve to be here at UPLA," she continued. "Forget what Amber says. I bet she's just jealous."

"I think so too," Leon muttered, just loud enough to be heard.

Hector was looking intently at the hole in the floor, most likely because of his lack of glasses. "So...is there any way to go down there? And fulfill our requirement in the remaining..." He looked at his watch. "Oh gosh. Twenty-two minutes."

Dominica gripped a Poké ball. "What choice do we have?" She walked up to the edge of the hole, took a deep breath, and slipped down. There was a soft thud, and she called out, "It's good."

The rest of us followed, with Leon taking up the rear. When each of us landed, dust flew up in a cloud, choking us all and coating our throats.

"GACK." Dominica gagged as Leon set off the biggest cloud. "Now that I know what a Camerupt feels like whenever it walks."

Everyone laughed.

A quiet scratch on the floor was all the warning we got before a Watchog pounced on us. Hector pounded it down easily with his Rypherior, winning us another sorely-needed point.

It was ten seconds after the Watchog when our final opponent came; a Weezing, most likely the one from before. The Weezing bellowed, a foghorn-like sound, before it released a cloud of gas from its mouth. I saw Hector's face turn green as he tugged his glasses back on and command his Tauros to attack. It charged and missed. So did the other Pokémon, even Dominica's Mienshao, a Pokémon noted for its accuracy. It seemed that every time a move was released, the Weezing would dodge it.

That is, until Leon's Seviper joined the fun.

I remembered that Leon had once mentioned how his Tony was so energetic and determined that if it missed a target, it would fire two more for the missed one. And he was right; Tony flew around the room, just as fast as the Weezing, spitting out jets of poison while the rest of us could do nothing but stare. Three of out four attacks landed off, but the one that hit clearly did damage; each time, the Weezing would drop another couple of feet, making an easier target for Tony. Finally, with a flick of the knife at the end of its tail, Tony earned the final point for us. We cheered, and Leon squeezed his Seviper hard.

"My good-for-nothing buddy finally did something!" he shouted over and over again.

I laughed until my stomach hurt, but not because I agreed; it was because he was so very wrong.

And because we did it.

* * *

_Okay, so this time the story wasn't written as well as it could have been...too fast paced...but please bear with me! I'm doing my best in between schoolwork and this._


	6. Chapter 6

**King of Everything**

_Looks like everything is progressing smoothly :) By the way, does anyone have any ideas on how to make antagonists seem more realistic? I feel like Amber is too over-the-top, but not so sure as to how to make that better without making her nice...oh, and this won't be my best chapter, it seems too rushed, but...meh_

* * *

**Chapter 6**

_Leon_

It's not hard to find something funny when you pay attention to the world around you, especially since scenery can change completely within two minutes.

First, I was cramming for my science test on Pokémon anatomy in my room, trying to memorize the names of the major bones in the body of a typical four-legged Pokémon, and then moments later, I walked into the cafeteria and saw- rather, _heard_- Ieri being berated by Jason, Will, and Lilly.

"What do you mean, you've never heard of it?!" Lilly was shouting, sounding exasperated. "We just explained it to you, didn't we?"

"I- I don't quite understand the concept!" Ieri held her hands up in front of her, trying desperately to defend herself from the verbal attack.

"What's going on?" I asked Hector, who was sitting at a different table with his hands clamped over his ears.

"Ieri's never heard of Halloween. So they're yelling at her." Hector explained to me, casting a withering glare over at the others.

I was a bit surprised, but mostly because I didn't understand why the three were yelling so loudly at poor Ieri just for Halloween. At the moment, she had her head ducked, trying to eat her breakfast in peace.

"Wait, what's wrong with not knowing what Halloween is?" I stood next to Ieri's chair and laid a hand on the back of the seat.

"Please don't tell me you don't know, either." Will groaned and rubbed his forehead with his hand.

"I'm sorry. I don't think Lentimas has a tradition like this, so I wouldn't think it likely that I _did_ know!" Ieri said, peering up slightly at me.

"Do you know now?"

"I think so."

Lilly threw herself back in her chair. "Wow. I mean- wow. I didn't think Lentimas Town was that isolated until I met this girl right here."

"Never mind that." I slid into the empty chair next to Jason. "When are the results for the expedition coming out?" Will slid a bowl of oran berry oatmeal over to me, and I put a spoonful of it in my mouth.

"They already did."

I nearly spit out the oatmeal. "What?"

Lilly smiled. "The results are hung up on the billboard over there." She pointed to the cork board that spanned the far wall. "That's where Ieri saw Halloween and asked us about it."

I shoveled the rest of the oatmeal into my mouth and practically flew across the room. With a sigh of relief, I found my name. My spirits soared even more when I saw that the destination was Black City, and that there we would be attending the world-famous Black City Halloween Festival.

Then, my happy-balloon popped, because I saw Terrance's name right above mine. As I looked even more, I realized that pretty much all of Amber's posse would be going. And finally, I found that we were leaving at six in the morning. Tomorrow.

I practically dragged myself back to the table and planted my face into the plastic when I got there. "Why are Amber and her group going?" I asked, not really directing the question towards anyone. "And why are we going so early in the morning?"

Will patted my back. "Yeah, I was going to cry about that too. But guess what?" His voice changed suddenly from pitying to extremely excited, and I felt a little seed of worry get planted in my chest (because as I learned from his genius prank on Lilly the day after the qualification tests, Will being excited equals something bad).

"What?"

"NADIA HENKS IS GOING!"

The sudden bellow in my ear sent me flying upright, wincing. "Dude! You just broke my eardrums!"

Will stood up, sat back down, and stood up again. "Nadia Henks! You know, that really cute girl that I'm going to ask out during the expedition!"

This time, it was my turn to rub my forehead out of irritation. "When, exactly, did you figure this out?"

Ieri reached her hand across the table and tapped the table next to my thumb. "Don't ask," she warned. "He's just going to go on about how she's the love of his life. Or something like that. He's done this, what, four times already?"

I leaned away from Will, who, as if on cue, began spouting romantic nonsense. He twirled- twirled!- in a circle and went back to the billboard for something. Lilly chewed her bread, chuckling to herself.

"She told you so," she stated proudly, taking a giant bite out of her food.

* * *

_Ieri_

I had never up so early before in my life.

Although I had done most of my packing the night before, I still had to get up at around four to finish up packing and check to make sure everything was in its place. Quickly and quietly, I brushed my teeth, stuffed more warm clothes into my bag (because apparently, it was cold in the Black City/White Forest area), and fed my Pokémon, who were, to say the least, not pleased to be woken up at five.

Since the cafeteria only opened after five forty-five, I traced the route that we would be taking to Black City. We would be going on a boat for about three hours to Castelia City, staying there for an hour and a half, and taking another boat to the Route 15 port. From there, it would be a short trek to Black City, where we would spend six days. On the first day, we would rest up; day two, three, and four, we would be choosing our groups and going to catch Pokémon or see the sights; and on the fifth day, it was the Black City Halloween Festival, and everyone would be attending. I still didn't understand Halloween- according to Lilly, Jason, Will, and Amanda (who had patiently explained it to me later, during our free period), one could dress up as whatever they wanted to be for a day. At the Festival, there would be stalls lining the main street, selling food and supplies and whatever else. And, as Lilly added with shining eyes, there would most likely be a large number of celebrities, like actors and professors and famous trainers. I was pretty excited.

Haxorus yawned and closed his mouth with a loud click. He shook his head and grumbled. I patted his stomach and looked out the window. The sun was about three-quarters out from behind the horizon. Part of the harbor was dyed a bloody-looking red, and some people were just coming out from their homes. If I went all the way to one side of the window and leaned in close to the glass, I could see a bit of the Abandoned House.

Suddenly, I remembered the first time I went to the Strange House with my friend Montor. I recalled the Banette that had jumped out at me when Montor was in the library, and how Montor's Haxorus- it was a Fraxure then- had defended me. Oh, how Montor laughed when he found me crying on the steps outside. He told me that there was no point in being afraid of things, because the fear wouldn't keep the thing away. I took those words to heart, and from then on, the only thing I was truly scared of was heights.

Then I remembered my parents, how happy they were when I received the letter. They had always worried that I wouldn't be able to get a good education, and that I would instead have to learn from my grandfather, who was the only one who had gone to a good school before me. He was becoming senile, so trying to learn from him would most likely be in vain. My eyes misted up; I missed my parents, even though I was happy here.

I snapped back to attention when Ninetales nudged me, holding my watch in her mouth. It was already five forty, and it would take more than a few minutes to go down the stairs with the main lights in the hallways off. I smiled at Ninetales, brought the Pokémon back into their respective Poké balls, and went outside.

_THUNK_.

"OWW!"

I hit something with the door, and that something happened to be Leon. When I pulled the door back to see, I found Leon leaning against the wall, clutching his left arm. "I'm so sorry!" I cried, reaching out a hand.

He laughed and stood up straight. "I'm good. Thanks." He stooped down and grabbed his duffel bag.

Leon waited as I locked the door, checked to see that all my travel things were there, and hung the key back on the cord. Quietly, we walked down the stairs, occasionally stopping so that I could curse at my battered old suitcase.

"Why'd you bring that?" he asked after we stopped for the sixth time. "Don't you have a smaller bag?"

I bit my lip. Should I tell him about how poor my family was? That we had to actually make our own cloth and make clothes out of whatever we didn't sell? I opened my mouth.

"Oh, look, the _scholarship students_ are here," said a sugary-sweet voice. We turned to see two of Amber's cronies, a boy and a girl, walk down the stairs behind us. The girl, who I knew was one of Amber's on-the-edge 'friends', daintily slung her brand-name purse over onto the handle of her suitcase of the same brand. The boy snickered and hefted his gigantic backpack as he passed by.

"They're jerks." Leon stated as soon as they were out of earshot.

I nodded and lugged my suitcase down the remaining stairs.

* * *

I remembered that when I first got to Virbank City, I thought it was massive. So, nothing could prepare me for Castelia.

The boat hadn't even gotten fully into the harbor yet when I heard honking and shouting. At first, I thought something major was going on, but no one else was panicking or doing anything even relatively close to panicking, so I relaxed. Amanda pointed out the entrance to the unused part of the Castelia sewers. She said that the unused part was blocked off from the used part, so Pokémon lived there in abundance and attracted beginning trainers who were itching to catch something easy (or smelly).

Our boat stopped at a small island just outside of the Castelia Harbor. A large sign that stood near the dock read "Liberty Island", and a tall lighthouse cast a long shadow over the land and part of the water.

Jason and Hector pushed past me, along with two other guys that I didn't know too well. "We're getting off here to see the lighthouse." Jason told me. "Supposedly, a Pokémon did the lights every night after its owner died, and its room is still inside."

That was interesting. I followed the four boys, but I stopped just before I got off the boat.

"Leon!" I called out. Leon poked his head around the corner further down the ship, where he had been standing in the tailwind, trying not to get seasick. "I'm getting off here!"

"_Wait for me!_" he shouted, shoving by people who were in his way. I turned to step off, but then I heard a commotion and looked back.

Terrance, the big boy that Amber was with before the tests, stood in front of Leon with his arms folded. I couldn't hear anything he said, but apparently, it was enough to make the people nearby back away.

Leon peered desperately at me from around Terrance. I started in his direction, but he shook his head, his pleading look suddenly turned into rage. A light from a Poké ball flashed, and Leon's Dragonair reared high above Terrance. Terrance backed up a step and dropped his own Poké ball, releasing a... Bellossom?

It was all silent for a few minutes. Then came the laughter.

Terrance roared. The Bellossom, oblivious to his dismay, danced in a circle around Terrance's feet. He took back the Bellossom and rushed off.

Leon was laughing too hard to walk without stumbling. As we got off the boat, his Dragonair, Dofin, trailed after us, swishing its tail to move, and occasionally nudged Leon's shoulder gently, as if to say "Calm down".

Hector had seen everything, and he was smiling widely. "Dang," he said. "that was entertainment."

I nodded and looked back at the lighthouse. It was painted a light blue, almost like the underbelly of the Dragonair, and the glass room at the top that held the light was boarded up. There was a fountain nearby that Jason was throwing coins into, and one of the other boys was crouched near a tide pool, poking at a Tympole.

"UPLA students," a PA system boomed. "In thirty minutes, there will be a ferry to take you to Castelia City. You also have the option of riding a Pokémon across the water, as long as you enter through Liberty Pier. Remember to be at Prime Pier by ten thirty. Have a good time."

The boat peeled away from the dock and rumbled off.

Leon rubbed his hands together. "So, who wants to see the lighthouse?"

"I heard that the former owner's Rotom was the one that took care of the tower after he died," Hector said in a creepy voice. "Maybe he's still _theeeeerrree..._"

"Oh, you shut up..."

As the two boys laughed at each other and went around to collect the others, I walked up the steps leading to the entrance of the lighthouse. The inside of the building was brightly lit with fluorescent lights that ran down a short hallway. With a deep breath, I went in.

The wooden floorboards creaked underneath my feet as I made my way down the stairs at the end of the hall. One of the lights flickered as I went by, temporarily dousing the floor with shadows.

I stood before a wide, spiraling staircase that went both up and down. No matter how hard I looked, I couldn't see anything at the top, just darkness, so I decided to wait for the boys before going up.

Carefully, I made my way down the stairs, letting my hand trail on the railing. Dry lumps of blue paint bumped my hand, and every so often, a flake would fall off. About halfway down, I felt something strange, stopped, and looked carefully at the railing. There was nothing out of the ordinary, if I wasn't mistaken...

Wait.

There was a short, long lump on the side of the railing that faced the wall. I picked at it, and something cold fell onto the stone staircase.

It was a key, and a small piece of paper was tied around it.

Making sure that nobody was around, I picked up the key, untied the paper, and read the scrawled handwriting.

"Keep for 12."

A sketch of a very familiar, red, and happy Pokémon was underneath the words.

I wanted so badly to take the key as a souvenir, but I knew that it would be wrong to keep it. Still, I found my hand gripping the key hard and my feet clomping down the last stretch of the stairs.

The staircase ended in a huge room. Windows high above my head told me that I was underground. A dusty canopy bed sat on the far side of the room. Two chairs and a table were right beside it, and a mini-stove stood, unused for a long time, next to three cans of gas on the floor. Besides these things, the room was empty.

Actually, there were crumbs all over the floor, which was strange. One would expect a lighthouse keeper to take good care of his only home, but no, there were crumbs all over...

But they were Pokémon food crumbs.

I could tell from the smell. It was vaguely fishy, and faintly fruity as well. Strange combination, and one that I had gotten to know quite well back at the stable back at home.

Other people were walking down the stairs now, their voices reverberating in the giant space. Just as I turned, I spotted Leon among them.

"Ieri! There you were!" he said with a smile. I smiled back and put the hand holding the key into my pocket.

"This is a huge room," one of the boys I didn't know stated loudly.

I went back up the stairs, passing them. "I saw it all already," I told them.

Leon followed me. "Guys, I'll go with her. I'm not too interested in a room anyways."

The boys hooted, and one of them said, "Don't try anything with her, Mr. Leon Darwin!"

Leon grumbled and ran up the stairs after me.

* * *

_Leon_

Ieri led me up the winding stairs, totally ignoring my questions. "What's up there?" "Are you cold?" "TALK TO ME, WILL YOU?"

She whirled around and hushed me. "It's sacred here," she hissed cryptically. "Victini lived here."

"What?"

"You know, Victini. It wasn't Rotom that lived here, it was Victini."

"How, exactly, do you know that?"

Ieri pulled out something from her pocket. It was a blue paint-covered key, and a folded paper was tied onto it. A picture of a Victini, the victory Pokémon, was drawn on the paper rather crudely.

"So? Why is this important?" I asked Ieri, not really seeing the cause for her sudden "it's so holy" attitude.

"Because it died here, didn't it?" she replied, tilting her head.

Then I got it. I remembered reading something about how the citizens of Lentimas Town treated death as an extremely sacred and spiritual thing. They were one of the two last towns that still built funeral pyres, formal graves for Pokémon, and had catacombs that snaked under the nearby volcano. No wonder Ieri was so reverent here.

"Okay, okay." I put my hands up in front of me as we went up the last bit of the stairs. At the top was a tall, red metal door, painted just as sloppily as the railings of the stairs. A golden _12_ was engraved into the door, strangely out of place with its shininess and intricacy. Ieri gazed up at it through half-shut eyes, and her lips moved silently. Most likely, she was muttering a prayer.

When she finished, she tried to turn the doorknob. It was locked. Ieri seemed to have been expecting that, because then, she pulled out the key. It fit into the keyhole, and the door opened with a creak after that.

"Are you sure we're allowed to be doing this?" I whispered as she stepped through into darkness.

"Nope."

That did not reassure me at all, but I went in after her anyways. The door shut with a slam behind us, and I jumped at the noise.

"Ninetales, a fire, please."

I didn't even realize that she had let her Pokémon out, but there it was, a glorious ball of flame that illuminated the entire- albeit tiny- room.

Right in front of us was a floodlight, almost, that sat on a stone lump. Its glass was cracked. Not that that mattered anyways, because the windows were boarded up, just like what I had seen from the outside.

Ninetales shifted, and the shadows across the wall danced. I shivered; the dustiness and pure silence- besides the crackling flame- was starting to creep me out.

Ieri, on the other hand, seemed to be happy. She was smiling widely, and she was looking around as if she were basking in the applause of an audience after a win in a battle. Her eyes fluttered, and she reached out a hand to touch one of the wooden boards on the windows.

Suddenly, there was a flash of light. Ieri pulled her hand back quickly and stumbled backwards into me. I grabbed her shoulder.

One of the boards had fallen to the ground, and sunlight spilled in. Ninetales shut her mouth, extinguishing her flame.

The view was magnificent. I could see Castelia City from here, and the sunlight bouncing off the water made the usually-blue substance shine. The tide pool was just below us, and I spotted a Pokémon leaping out of the pool and into the shallows of the ocean.

Ieri gasped and moved forwards to stand in front of the window. I stood there, transfixed and with a blush creeping into my face. A halo of sorts had formed around her from the light, and as she turned her head, the light made her eyes sparkle as well.

That was probably the first time that I realized- I was smitten with Ieri Vincent.

She turned quickly, and I ducked my head to hide my face. Quietly, I stared at my shoes.

"Let's go back." she said with a hint of a smile. "We can use our Pokémon to get to Castelia."


	7. Chapter 7

**King of Everything**

_Okay, so maybe working on two stories at the same time isn't exactly the best idea I've ever had. But it's kind of fun, actually, to have to switch trains of thoughts. Some people might say it's annoying, but I like it. I get new ideas each time. Alright, enough about me..._

* * *

**Chapter 7**

_Leon_

"Dude."

_Poke_.

"Dude."

_Poke_.

"DUDE."

I groaned and jabbed my elbow up in the air, catching Will in the face.

"DUDE!"

"What do you want? I'm trying to take a nap here." I sat up and ran a hand through my hair. Amanda and Jason sat across from me in the restaurant booth, both with barely hidden smirks behind their drinks and fries.

Ieri is staring out the window, both hands on the sill, most likely watching the people outside the restaurant walk by.

It was our third day in Black City, and we were sitting in a small burger joint called The Magmortar (indeed, there was a Magmortar that tried to singe off Will's face, but that's different) in the Black City Market. It was more like the market back home in Driftveil than the huge one in Virbank, not much more than a row of stalls and stores. I felt a pang in my chest, remembering my sister and my town.

Then I remembered my mom, and for some reason, my throat tightened. I still couldn't believe that she had come to UPLA, and never told me. And, despite my hatred towards her when she drank too much, I worried that she didn't have enough to get by, since I was the one who earned most of the money. She was still my mom, and-

"I might have to put ice on this," Will said, interrupting my thoughts. He rubbed his nose, which looked perfectly fine.

Amanda seemed to agree with me. "I see no bruising, and it most certainly does not look broken. And it's not bleeding."

Jason snickered and stuffed the remainder of his burger into his mouth. "Dude, you shuden mef with him when dere a girl who wompf to be a dotor."

"What?"

He swallowed and repeated his statement. "You shouldn't mess with someone when there's a girl who wants to be a doctor."

"Oh." Will stopped stroking his nose. "Fine. But I was going to ask, do you guys want to go to catch Pokémon? We spent the first day resting and yesterday exploring the Market and the city."

"Yeah, sure." Jason stood up and tucked his Grimsley amulet into his black jacket. "Abundant Shrine and Route 14, then, right?"

The rest of us cleaned up as Jason and Ieri spread a map out on the table, discussing the fastest way to get to the famous Abundant Shrine, where all the Pokémon were somewhat out of place in the region but cool.

"There's a bus that goes directly to Abundant Shrine, it's about ten minutes. Much better than walking, but if you walk, then you can go through Route 14." Jason was saying.

Ieri looked up. "Do you guys want sightseeing and Pokémon catching or do you want to go directly to the Shrine?"

Will shrugged and Amanda peered up at me, as if waiting for me to say something. I _um_ed and looked at the map. "How about the bus? Then we could come back through the route, and maybe even check out the Transfer Lab, for Amanda."

The girl in question grinned.

"Yeah, that would work," Jason replied after a minute of contemplation. "Sounds good?"

No one objected, so off to the bus stop it was, passing lots of skyscrapers and people. A group was beginning to set up the stage for the Halloween costume competition, the orange banner flapping helplessly in the wind.

Not too much to say about the bus ride, except that Will got carsick.

Abundant Shrine was much smaller than I thought it would be. I had an image of a massive field with grass around the perimeter and a catacomb in the middle. Instead, it was a hilly area with fields, two ponds, and a tiny wooden structure on the highest part of the hills. Amanda explained that it used to be a tiny town, but it was destroyed by Landorus, Thunderus, and Tornadus when they fought centuries ago. The only two things that still stood from that time were a dilapidated little house by the entrance and the shrine.

Our group of five separated and went off on our own.

As soon as I stepped into some of the tall grass, I heard a shriek, and a Ninetales jumped at me. Reflexively, I let out a Pokémon, unsure of which until I felt a tickling feeling. I groaned.

It just had to be Darter, my peabrain Misgmagius.

Darter laughed and floated around me. I swatted at him and yelled, which, I'm sure, did nothing but encourage my Pokémon to keep on harassing me. Finally, I caught one of his little trailing tail things and growled at him to fight.

Darter spit a random rock at me and turned to face the real enemy. The Ninetales had sat back on its haunches and watched the assault with amusement, evident in its beady black eyes. Darter put on a show, flipping and turning.

The Ninetales snapped at Darter, smoke curling out from between its fangs. Darter released a Psybeam without any prompting, and he hit his target. The Ninetales whimpered and crouched down, then shook its head and retaliated with a Flame Charge. Darter dodged, but that left me in the direct path of the rampant Ninetales. It barreled into my stomach. I fell over, and the full weight of the Ninetales hit me.

Pain seared through my body, and I must have screamed, because Jason and Will ran over. Jason's Serperior gently wrapped its tail around me, under my arms, and eased me into a sitting position as Will's Blastoise let loose with a Hydro Pump and sent the Ninetales flying into the trees.

"Hey, man, you okay?" Will asked, concern creasing the skin between his eyebrows.

I was not. The ground felt shaky beneath me, even though I was sitting, and the corners of my vision were black. Darter hovered by me, definitely sorry.

That's one thing that I like about that idiot Pokémon, I thought blearily. It can communicate its feelings.

"It's okay, Darter," I mumbled, barely coherent.

Then, I passed out.

* * *

_Ieri_

Freaking out didn't quite cover my reaction to Leon being attacked by a Ninetales. It was more like an emotional breakdown of the highest degree.

Amanda was the same as she checked his vitals and cleaned the burns with help from Leon's Dragonair. Her movements were frantic, and when she told Will to get help, it was desperate. He borrowed her Swanna- which, for some reason, was the only Pokémon in the vicinity that knew Fly- and flew back to Black City to get a teacher.

"Just first-degree burns," she said, obviously relieved, after she examined his wounds for about ten minutes. "I guess he was wearing some really thick clothing."

Darter, the Mismagius, was floating next to Leon's prostrate body. His head was down, almost as if he was grieving.

"Still, that's funny," Amanda muttered, looking back and forth between Leon's charred sweatshirt and his bare stomach. "A flaming impact like that should've left him incapacitated with third-degree burns. At least second degree."

"Maybe he's lucky," Jason suggested.

"Maybe," was her half-hearted reply.

Leon shifted and groaned, and I sat up straighter, my fists curling into even tighter balls than before.

"Hey, you alright now?" Jason asked, just as I opened my mouth to do the same.

Leon tried to sit up, but Amanda put a hand on his shoulder and forced him back down. "Don't. You have burns on your lower abdomen, and I don't have any medical supplies on me, so I don't recommend moving."

With a flump, Leon lay back down. "It doesn't hurt though. I think I'm okay."

"You aren't."

A shadow appeared on the ground, and Will leaped off of Amanda's Swanna, followed by Mr. Lawrence, the math teacher.

"Oh dear." he said with a whistle when he saw Leon. Mr. Lawrence crouched down next to him. "What happened?"

"A Ninetales used Flame Charge on him," I told him. "He got knocked out, and those are...first-degree burns. Right?"

Amanda nodded.

"Okay. Let's get him back to Black City." Mr. Lawrence released a Volcarona and put Leon on. With a simple hand signal, the Volcarona lifted up into the air, with Leon on its back and Mr. Lawrence hanging from its feet. "I assume you all have Pokémon that can fly back?" he shouted down at us.

"No!" Jason shouted back.

I thought I could see his mouth moving to say "uh-oh", but he disappeared before I could confirm that. But no need; Will said it for us.

"Uh-oh. How do we get back, then?" he whimpered.

"We need to go down the waterfalls and a river, and then we have to go down Route 14." Jason stated, very business-like. "No big deal."

"No big-" Will was about to say, but Amanda cut him off and began walking towards the entrance.

"If we hurry back, we can check up on Leon sooner," she said, glaring pointedly at Will. "So let's go."

* * *

Our first challenge was the waterfall, which led to a river.

It was scary and enchanting at the same time. Water roared over the precipice, dropped a few hundred feet, and ended in the main Route 14 river. From up here, I could see tall grass rustling as Pokémon went through and the trainers that stalked them. Mist drifted up into the sky like a massive, transparent cloud.

"We couldn't have taken the way that the bus did?" Will asked, defeated.

I pointed at the route that we had taken. "It loops into Undella Town and it's a private, town-owned path. We're not allowed on there."

Jason let out his Lanturn and placed a board in the water next to it. "I don't know about you guys," he said, gripping the Pokémon's fin tightly. "But I'm not afraid to get soaked." He snapped his fingers, and the Lanturn swam forward, over the cliff, with Jason in tow on the board. Amanda blanched and ran to the edge of the cliff.

"Jason!" she screamed. I stood next to her, watching Jason land expertly on the water below. He must have been great at surfing. Or jumping down waterfalls.

Will was in the water, too, with his Blastoise. He stood on the Pokémon's shell, shifting his weight, as if trying to figure our whether or not he would fall just by standing. He waved at me and Amanda, and went over. Will wasn't as lucky- or cool, for that matter- when he landed, because the Blastoise sunk into the water upon impact, taking Will down with him. He came back up, spluttering and spewing some very colorful words.

"You could've just flown back," I said as Amanda got onto the back of her Swanna.

She smiled gently. "I could've, but I think it would've been too much torture for you to have to take care of those two...lugheads." I laughed, and she and her Swanna pitched backwards off the cliff to join the two boys on the riverbank below.

I was alone now. Luckily for me, Cobalt, my Empoleon, knew both Surf and the official Waterfall move, so I could go down safely and without getting wet. But there was a whole other problem here.

I was afraid of heights.

Maybe it was obvious to everyone when I freaked out during the qualification test, when we were standing on the platforms. This phobia was my pet peeve, the bane of my existence, and my only true fear. Still, I had to seriously stare it down if I wanted to get back to Black City.

Cobalt bumped my shoulder, and I sat down. _Deep breaths_, I told myself as the Empoleon started to move.

Suddenly, my stomach seemed to be flying up into the air as I went down the waterfall. I clung onto Cobalt and closed my eyes tight. At least Cobalt's Waterfall move prevented the water from getting on me.

Finally, after what felt like hours, we hit the river. For a few seconds, we just bobbed along on the river's current.

Jason helped me up onto the bank. "So now, we just go through Route 14, and we're good." he declared brightly.

I tried to smile back with as much enthusiasm, but I couldn't. My stomach felt like it was about to turn in on itself, and bile began to rise in my throat.

"I think I'm going to vomit." I said simply. With one hand on my mouth and one hand on my stomach, I leaned against the stone cliff. Then the dry heaving started, and I shut my eyes.

Someone's fingers took my hand from my stomach and squeezed a spot just below my wrist. My stomach slowly calmed, and my queasiness went away. I opened up my eyes to see Will standing in front of me, looking smug.

"That's a trick for nausea that I use all the time." he told me, then turned away. "Let's get going. Movement might help too."

We tread carefully across the rickety-looking bridge that spanned one of the branch-offs from the main river, plodded through a patch of squelchy mud, and picked through the tall grass. Just as we were about to get out and onto a solid dirt path and just as I began to let my guard down, something tackled me from the side and bowled me over. I yelped, and Jason moved to help me, but the thing growled at him and glared down at me.

It was an Absol, and a big one at that. Teeth bared, hackles raised, a deep rumbling rising from its throat. I gasped and fumbled with my Poké balls.

Montor's Haxorus popped out, noted the situation, and full-out roared. I saw the three others cover their ears, and a nearby trainer and his Minun backed away.

To the Absol's credit, it didn't retreat. Instead, it tried its own little roar, which would have been scary if I hadn't heard the Haxorus` first.

"Slash!" I shouted. Haxorus brought its claws down at the Absol, which tried to jump out of the way. One claw caught its rear end, and the Pokémon whimpered in pain. Haxorus used X-Scissor and left deep marks that were visible, even through the Absol's thick fur. It stopped moving.

"Finish it!" someone shouted. I considered it, but instead, I pulled out an empty Poké ball and threw it. The Absol hissed at the Poké ball that was flying at its face, but it didn't move when it opened up and beamed the Absol in. The ball dropped to the ground, wobbled, and darkened. Amanda cheered.

Shakily, I walked over and picked up the ball. Absol stared up at me hatefully, and I grinned at it before I put it away. Haxorus returned to its own ball.

"I want to show it to Leon," I said to no one in particular.

Amanda hurried up to me. "Are you okay? Are you hurt? Did it leave a mark?" she asked, throwing out each question like a machine gun.

"I'm fine. I think." I touched my shoulder, and my fingers came away just the tiniest bit red. "It's not bad. I think it's a superficial cut."

Amanda sighed. "Good. Let's get going before something else happens." She stormed past Jason and Will.

"Geez. I think today's excitement was a little too much for Amanda," Jason whispered to me. I nodded in agreement and ran after her.

* * *

Leon was fine by the next morning. He was up and at it, and when Hector asked him about the bandages that were wound around his shoulder, Leon just laughed and said "Cannonball".

It was the day before Halloween, and Amanda wanted us all to go get a costume. "Or at least a hat," she protested when nobody besides myself agreed. "I know for a fact that Touko is going to be there."

Immediately, everyone perked up. "Touko?" Hector repeated.

"The famous Touko, who is now eighteen years old and one of the hottest _and_ most successful Pokémon trainers ever?"

All eyes turned to Will, who just shrugged and said, "It's true."

"If I'm not mistaken, Touya, _who is already engaged to Touko_, will also be there," Amanda continued. "I hope I get their autograph. Oh, oh, and guess who else is going? Miranda Lewis!"

Silence. One could almost hear the gears turning in peoples` heads, trying to figure out who Miranda Lewis was.

Amanda put her head in her hand. "She was the winner of the Pokémon Junior Medical Innovations contest last year, the most prestigious medical competition in the world for people under eighteen. Her design actually got patented and is used in hospitals today. You seriously don't know her?"

Actually, I did. My dad was one of the judges for the competition, seeing as to how he was a breeder, and I got to shake hands with the winner and runner-ups. For fear of being decapitated by an excited Amanda, I didn't say it out loud.

"That's pretty awesome," Jason said, nodding his head approvingly. "She's not even a legal adult yet, and she comes with something so professional. I like that."

Amanda smiled, her whole face lighting up. "See? Someone with a brain."

Leon elbowed Will. "Yeah, Will. Someone with a brain."

"_I mean you too!_"

I don't think I have laughed so hard before in my life.

* * *

_Sorry, this time, the story probably isn't very well-written. Not feeling too good. But I hope you enjoyed it and it was tolerable...?_


End file.
